Axe and Sword - Athenowl - Harry Potter (2024)

Chapter 1: Map

Chapter Text

Chapter 2: Prologue

Chapter Text

“Have the preparations been made?”

“Yes, your highness.”

“I hope you did not assign your best men to this job.”

“…sir?”

The king sighed and set his pen down; his steepled, bony fingers bled frustration. “When I made you the captain of the guard, Lucius, I had hoped you would have a modicum of intelligence. Your best men are trained veterans, are they not?”

“Yes, my lord.” The man seemed unsettled by his calm demeanor. Good.

“And they are loyal members of my staff?”

“Of course, my lord.”

“Then what possessed you to believe sending them into a bloodbath in the coldest part of the continent was a good idea?” The king’s patience had worn thin. For a moment, he considered killing the incompetent captain where he stood, but his plans were too far along already to find a replacement.

To his credit, Malfoy looked appropriately stricken. “I don’t know, sir.”

“Fix it. I don’t have time for delays.”

With a curt nod and a bow, Malfoy swept out of the office, nearly catching the end of his black cloak in the door as he shut it behind him with a dull thud. The king sighed once more and slipped his paperwork into his desk; he had too much on his mind to worry about silly things like border disputes and the incessant sniping of Tidoras’ queens right now.

He trailed his fingertips over the hills and valleys of the map stretching stark across his desk. It was old enough that trees still surrounded Os Anguis in place of his keep and walls, but too young to mark the Wildland as anything but a blank shape. The king’s sharp eyes flickered north from the valleys of his kingdom to his quarry, hidden in the shadow of the mountains.

Frystmark was a wasteland of ice, snow, and rock. Its people were as barbaric as the creatures that roamed the dense forests and tundra, and just as dangerous. The legends about the North were grisly things; it was said the warriors ate the hearts of their fallen foes raw and let their children play on the ground with their mutts, like animals. His soldiers would be butchered without the element of surprise. Their armor was nothing to a direwolf’s teeth.

But getting through Frystmark would be easy compared to the second phase of his plan, even with the treacherous landscape and unforgiving weather. Varghal, the capital, was a veritable fortress at the feet of frozen woods and protected at the back by an impenetrable tundra. The massive outer wall was stalked by wolves and warriors alike; to charge it head-on was a suicide mission.

It was a good thing he had spoken to Lucius about keeping his strongest ranks at home, where they would come into play much later in the game.

The king leaned his head back in his chair, breathing in the sweet, smoky wind that rolled in through his tower window. He had been so busy lately—world domination was an exhausting business and continued to drain his energy even after seventy years of gradual conquest. He had singlehandedly turned Silvalith’s grubby, scrabbling farmland into an industrial powerhouse right under the noses of his neighbors, who were too wrapped up in scraping through tentative peace to pay attention. Few alive remembered his original conquest—all it took was a few thousand lives to claim a decent portion of the Middle Kingdom.

His victory had been stolen by a single misplaced failure. The king frowned at his map, and the blank land to the south. It would not happen again.

The border of Tidoras was already waning under the attacks of black-clad raiders who, miraculously, left the fields of Silvalith untouched. Frystmark was soon to follow, as long as Lucius didn’t f*ck it up too badly.

And after the great northern stronghold was razed, once the royals were out of the picture and the land of barbarians rendered helpless…well, it would be only too easy to take the rest of the continent for his immortal kingdom. He would rip the magic from every root and branch and drench himself in its sweetness.

Riddle smiled.

Chapter 3: The Wolf's Den

Chapter Text

“Jamie, did you pack any trousers?”

“Of course, I’m not an—oh, hang on, I don’t think I did.”

Sirius rolled his eyes and delved deeper into the pile of colorful clothing that threatened to devour his elbows whole. “Those might be helpful if you’re going to be stomping around in the snow.”

A head of wild hair poked around the corner of the room just in time to catch a pair of thick winter pants to the forehead. James scowled and Sirius pulled a face right back at him. “We.”

“We what?”

“We are going to be stomping around in the snow.”

“What?”

“Didn’t Mum and Dad tell you? You’re coming with us to Varghal.”

“It’sVari-hall, James, notVargull. Of the two of us, you should know that.” He collected a few more pairs of pants that seemed as if they could handle more than the gentle ocean breezes and followed James into the next room, where his bag lay half-packed and half-open on the bed. “And since when am I going with you?”

James shrugged. “I dunno, three days ago?”

“Jamie!”

“I’m just kidding,” he laughed, bouncing a pair of socks off Sirius’ chest. “Sea and storm, you’re uptight today. Mum told me this morning. I think she’s worried I’ll get bored and cause trouble, so she wants you to supervise.”

Because I’m just brilliant at doing that, Sirius thought as he folded another long-sleeved shirt that hadn’t seen use since the last monsoon. James haphazardly tucked his socks along one side before flopping onto the mattress and closing his eyes as a gust of salty wind blew in off the sea outside. Sirius shifted the bag aside to make room and laid next to him; it had been much easier for them both to fit when they were 16 and spindly. “You alright?”

“I really hate these things,” James murmured, cracking one eye open to watch a gull wheel past.

“I know.”

“I don’t understand why I have to do them.”

“Yes, you do.”

“Yeah, I do,” he admitted, resting his chin on his forearms with an unhappy tilt to his mouth. “I don’t know how to tell them.”

Sirius sighed and rolled onto his back; the boats bobbing on distant waves were beautiful even upside-down. “Just make it through the Council, yeah? Try and tell them afterward.” A few beats of silence passed and he elbows James lightly in the ribs. “They’re not going to hate you.”

“I hate it when you read my mind,” he mumbled, though some of the anxiety in his dark eyes had eased.

“Besides,” Sirius continued. “I’ve never been to Varghal. You need to stick it out for two more weeks and be my tour guide.”

James shot him a look. “The last time I was there, I was fifteen and it was summertime. I barely remember it.”

“Ah, yes, the pre-happiness days,” Sirius mused. “Must have been quite depressing for you before I showed up on your doorstep. Poor James, all alone with his parents’ full attention—”

“Oh, bullsh*t, you’re such a nightmare—”

“Language.” Both of them jumped; Sirius turned a guilty look at the doorway, where a woman in a long skirt stood with a raised brow and her arms crossed. She gave the mess of James’ bag a pointed glance. “I hope you’re done packing.”

“Almost,” they chorused.

“He needed help remembering to pack trousers,” Sirius added.

Euphemia shook her head with a smile. “Did he at least remember to tell you the change of plans, or should I send a pigeon next time?”

“It would have a better memory than him, that’s for—ow!”

“No violence in the house, please.” Euphemia turned with a bright smile as dark arms wound around her waist and a kiss brushed her cheek. Fleamont narrowed his eyes at the pair of them over his wife’s shoulder with teasing sternness. “I seem to recall two young men receiving orders to pack their things several hours ago.”

An odd expression flickered over James’ face and Sirius paused halfway through tying a side pocket of his rucksack closed. “Are you sure Sirius and I have to go?” James asked, much quieter than normal.

Some of the playfulness faded from Fleamont’s eyes and he crossed the room, taking James by the shoulders. “Someday, you will be the leader of the mainland,” he began. Pride shone through every crease by his eyes and brows as he cupped the side of James’ face in his hand. “You will represent not only the family in this room, but each of the islands to the rest of the continent. It takes a great deal of responsibility. People will look to you as an example, and I could not be prouder of the leader you have become.”

“Varghal is going to be frozen solid.”

“Vari-hall,” Euphemia and Fleamont corrected in unison. A smile ticked at the corner of Fleamont’s mouth as he clapped James on the shoulder. “The annual Council is a duty you must fulfill.”

“We’ll be home before winter sets in,” Euphemia assured him with a wink at Sirius behind their backs. They had each heard the speech enough times that Sirius could practically recite it from memory. “Frystmark is lovely in the fall. Sirius, please start packing. James, don’t forget your trousers.”

Fleamont straightened and snapped his fingers. “Trousers! That’s what I forgot!”

The journey north was surprisingly comfortable. Their caravan was not large, consisting of only two carriages; Euphemia, Fleamont, and James would represent the island council of the Eastern Coast and brought a meager three attendants with them. Sirius wasn’t an attendant, but he wasn’t technically part of the ruling family, either—as their ward, he existed in a strange limbo that boiled down to a position as James’ official best friend. It was the most wonderful job in the world, as far as he was concerned. Certainly better than what he left behind.

They followed the line of the coast; Sirius could feel the temperature grow colder and drier with each passing day. The glittering teal sea turned eerie indigo with each mile north and the breezes that tickled his face were replaced by howling winds. Boats became few and far between, until the double masts and shallow hulls he knew turned to a single striped sail and curling bows.

He remembered the winters of west Silvalith, when the frozen rivers and large snowflakes could be handled by a thick coat and some mittens, but the chill of Frystmark settled somewhere deep in his bones as they crossed the border from the Middle Kingdom. Even the forests were different; though Harindvar was a prolific trading hub and held a large piece of Sirius' heart after six years, it did not have many trees to speak of, and the lush forests they passed through had all turned auburn and gold as autumn's roots secured their place. Frystmark’s trees were a rich green with needlelike leaves and rough bark—they smelled sharp, totally unlike the loam of oak or elm.

“What kind of people would choose to live here?” James muttered on the sixth night of their journey while Fleamont and Euphemia dozed on the opposite bench seat. His breath was visible against the icy glass of their carriage. Sirius was once again grateful for the extra coat he had borrowed.

“You know the royals better than I do.” A shadow flickered in his periphery and he squinted into the night. Nothing appeared.

“That’s the weird part. Queen Hope is as sweet as Mum, and King Lyall reminds me of Dad, if someone watered down his sense of humor. Their son's a bit odd, though.”

Sirius frowned. “What do you mean?”

“About what?”

“Their son.”

“Well, it’s not that he’sodd, he just…” James trailed off, chewing the inside of his lip.

Realization dawned on Sirius and he grinned. “You’re scared of him! What did hedo?”

“I’m not scared of him!” James hissed. “And shush, you’ll wake Mum and Dad.”

“You totally are.”

“No, it’s—” James ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “He’s quiet, but not in a shy way. He spends most of the meetings watching everyone else and only chimes in when he can completely tear apart their argument, then comes up with this amazing plan to help three countries at once. And then he doesn't talk to anyone except Dorcas, ever. It's just strange, that's all.”

“So…you’re jealous?”

“I should be.” James’ voice was barely above a murmur and Sirius wondered if he had meant to say it aloud at all. “At the last council, this general from Silvalith tried to be an ass about his mum’s idea and he shut the guy down in ten words. He’s like Marlene, if she had any self-control.”

Sirius smiled. He liked Marlene for exactly that reason; her air of ‘pretentious spoiled princess’ hid a wicked intelligence, more boldness than a wild boar, and a knack for trouble that rivaled his own. Visiting her in Tidoras was a rare occasion given the distance, but he counted her near the top of his short list of friends. They got into the best sort of trouble.

James bumped him on the shoulder and Sirius glanced away from the wilderness in confusion. “I’m glad you’re here with me,” James said. “It's deadly boring without you.”

"What is?"

Something warm came over his expression, and a smile tilted the side of his mouth. "Everything."

While the woods had been terrifying under cover of night and the inherent intensity of a city built at the base of a mountain range had certainly prickled at the back of Sirius’ neck, he couldn’t deny that Varghal was beautiful in the daylight. He stared at the wooden wall in slackjawed awe as they passed through it, trundling below warriors with muscles as thick as tree trunks and dogs the size of small horses. The mountains themselves were larger than life—they shone in a myriad of icy blues and lilac against the glaring white snow that had already begun to fall.

The castle wasn’t actually a castle, not by Sirius’ definition of the word. It was more like a massive stone lodge with a sharply slanted roof of leaf-shaped shingles to keep the snow off. Contrary to James’ previous comments, the people looked quite happy to be there; they smiled and dipped their heads to the Eastern Coast carriages while a herd of small children ran behind them, shrieking with laughter.

The shock of the cold on Sirius’ unprotected face as he stepped out must have been clear, because an elderly woman bustled over from her soup pot and adjusted the edges of his collar into their proper position, tutting under her breath while he tried to get his lungs back in working order. “Welcome to the North, dear. Try not to lose any fingers on your first day.”

Somehow, Sirius didn’t think she was joking as he shivered out a ‘thank you’ and hurried up the steps after James.

The carved wooden doors to the lodge opened with a groan, revealing a throne room made entirely of gray stone and dense oak. At the end of the aisle, three people walked down the dais to greet them. “Welcome to Varghal, friends!” King Lyall’s deep voice echoed off the walls as he crossed the room and grasped Fleamont's hand in a tight handshake. The informality of the gesture was a bit surprising, but the lack of stiff disinterest was a relief. “How was your journey? Did you stay warm?”

Sirius was vaguely aware of Euphemia's answer to his right, but his vison tunneled as soon as the prince came into view.

He was tall— at least an inch taller than James, Sirius noted with a sense of satisfaction—but not nearly as broad as his father, though the sword at his hip hinted at a lot more muscle than met the eye. His wavy hair was the color of sweet caramel, and his eyes—

Sirius' breath caught when the prince looked at him; it was a true miracle his knees didn’t dissolve into slush. The sharp amber pinned him in place and he finally realized what James had been talking about. There was no doubt in his mind that the prince was the most observant person in the room.

“—and our ward, Sirius.” Euphemia’s smooth voice snapped him back to reality and he turned to the king and queen, offering his brightest smile to hide the fact that he had just been ogling their son in the middle of their court.

“It’s lovely to meet you. You have a beautiful…mountain.” Sirius regretted his word choice as soon as it left his mouth, but the twinkle in Queen Hope’s eye and a quiet huff from behind her soothed his embarrassment. The prince was barely holding down a smile; his shoulders shook with silent laughter.

“This is our son, Remus,” King Lyall stepped aside slightly to make room for the prince.

Remus shook Sirius’ hand with the ghost of a grin at the edges of his pointed lips. “A pleasure.”

“Indeed.”Would it be inappropriate to wink? Probably. He did it anyway. The faint dusting of pink along the tops of Remus’ freckled cheekbones—freckles, oh,yes—was poorly hidden as he moved to greet James and his parents.

A guard with biceps the size of Sirius’ head led them to a nearby lodge once the initial greeting was done; they would have the welcome feast later for a proper ‘hello’, anyway, and the king and queen couldn’t spend all day chatting.

“I can’t believe you,” James hissed as they followed his parents to the lodge from a safe distance, boots crunching in the fresh snow. “Icannotbelieve you.”

“What did I do?” Sirius whispered back.

“Flirting! You were flirting with the f*cking prince!” James’ ears had gone red, but he sounded more baffled than angry. “Why thehelldid you do that?”

“Did you see him?” he snorted, earning himself a punch on the arm. “Hey! It’s not like you’re rival countries or anything!”

“He might bebetrothed,” James said slowly, like he was explaining it to a child.

“What, you think I’m sexy enough to swoop in and steal some poor Frystmarkan’s man?”

“That isnot the point. The point is that there could be some sort of political agreement that he’s involved in and if you screw it up it could have actual consequences!”

“…so youdothink I’m sexy enough to—”

“Oh, for the love of—” James made a funny sort of grumbling noise and stormed ahead, pointedly turning his back on Sirius.

“Do you want to know what the best part was?” Sirius waited a moment, and when James continued to march on, he jogged ahead of him and tried to catch his eye while walking backward. “James. Jamie. I know you want to know what the best part was.”

James stopped and scrubbed a hand down his face. “What, pray tell, was the best part?”

Sirius’ smile was downright devilish. “It worked.”

“Jamie!” A blur of yellow and purple materialized from the crowd of people passing by—James disappeared beneath a mane of golden hair for a moment, stumbling under the force of the embrace.

“Hello to you, too, Marlene,” Sirius laughed. “I’m doing well, thanks for asking.”

“Shut up, you.” She squeezed him tight enough to pull a wheeze out, then stepped lightly on his foot with a crooked grin. Sirius pulled her back in for another hug; he had missed her more than he cared to admit. “It’s been too long.”

“It’s good to see you.” His voice was a bit muffled in her curls, and the hilt of the longsword across her back threatened to blind him each time she moved despite the head of height difference between them. “How’s the lion's court? Not in shambles, I assume?”

“I’ve done my damndest, but still she stands,” Marlene held him at arm’s length with a gleam in her eye. “I guess I’ll need my partner in crime one of these days.”

“You’ve already got one,” a tall woman said as she approached at a much more reasonable speed, though her voice had the same amount of humor. “You can’t get rid of me that easily, especially not forSirius.”

“Don’t worry, Dorcas, he’s got his eye on someone else,” James said wearily.

Marlene’s grin became downright devilish. “Really? Stooping down to the level of mere mortals, are we? Who is it? How long? Why does Jamie look so exhausted by you?”

“Let’s see,” James said before Sirius could make things worse. How unfortunate, he thought. “We’ve been here for under an hour and the only people we’ve met are an elderly woman who warned him against frostbite and the royal family. I’ll give you three guesses, and the first two don’t count.”

“Youdidn’t,” Dorcas and Marlene gasped at the same time, though one sounded significantly more gleeful than the other.

“And he succeeded,” James groaned, thumping his forehead against Dorcas’ shoulder.

"Poor Remus," Dorcas laughed. "I'll warn him at dinner."

"Hey!" Sirius protested. "I'm a perfectly lovely individual."

"No, you're not," the three of them said in unison.

“Peter would agree with me," he scoffed as he draped an arm over Marlene's shoulders. "Where is he, by the way?”

Marlene stepped closer and rested her head on his shoulder; though they barely saw each other once a year, Sirius never felt as comfortable as when the four of them were together. The cold air burning his lungs seemed to ease in their presence. “He’ll be here soon enough. Some of the Silval knights were giving him a hard time earlier and he wanted a little time to read after unloading everything.”

James' jaw ticked. “Which knights?”

“Rosier and Yaxley,” she sighed. “Don’t worry, I already dueled them.” James made an unhappy sound, but he dropped the issue. “Come on, I need you three to admire my dress for the party tonight. Dorcas, darling, you already gave your opinion, but I could stand to hear it again.”

Marlene’s dress was, in fact, quite wonderful. If they weren’t practically siblings, Sirius would have been smitten with her the second she and her mothers made their entrance at the welcome feast. The light of torches lining the walls sparkled off the silvery fabric as the steward announced the royal family of Tidoras; she complemented Dorcas’ golden dress perfectly as they sat next to one another, a bright spot amongst the diplomats and representatives.

Quite the pair, Sirius thought as he took a sip of ale.

“King Lyall, Queen Hope, and Prince Remus of Frystmark!” The steward’s voice rang out and Sirius came terribly close to spitting his drink all over James, who gave him an exasperated look as he coughed into a napkin and applause echoed off the high stone walls.

Remus cast a quick look his way and the corners of his mouth twitched up. Unfortunately for Sirius’ coherent thought process (or general ability to drink things), Remus’ tan tunic and deep blue cloak were exceedingly flattering against his...well,everything. Sirius sent a silent litany of gratitude to Euphemia for inviting him along to the council. Thankfully, Remus was called away before Sirius’ face could get any redder.

The feast was delicious and loud, just the way Sirius liked it. There was no pressure to make treaties or discuss pressing topics—the welcome feast was a time for greetings and light conversation, for catching up with old friends and ignoring the frigid wind outside for the warmth of being close. Sirius felt as if someone lit him up from the inside.

However, the real fun came after the meal, when the bards kicked up a quick tune and the long tables were pushed aside to make a dance floor. The hall grew louder and more chaotic, filled with swirling bodies and off-key singing that warmed the place so much Sirius had to remove his outer cloak. He wheeled around the room with Marlene, both laughing as they slipped between young children who wanted in on the excitement. He and James shared a dramatic slow dance once Marlene swept off to find Dorcas, much to the amusem*nt of the older couples around them.

A figure standing alone by a far window caught his attention and he took a break during a lull in the music, snagging his half-finished pint and a fresh one from the table as he made a beeline for them; his heart skipped a beat at being so close as he went for a causal lean against the wall. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“I live here,” Remus said with half a laugh, taking the offered drink after giving him a quick up-and-down look. His expression was still collected, but full of interest. Sirius gave himself a mental high-five.

“Do you really? I hadn’t noticed. The boots really threw me off.” Sirius grinned as Remus glanced down at his thick, fur-lined boots. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but your ale is terrible.”

Remus’ cheeks went pink with amusem*nt. “Then why did you bring it over?”

“Mutual suffering?” Sirius offered with a shrug that brought a small smile from him.

“Don’t tell my da, but I can’t stand the stuff.” He raised his pint in response to a passing noble and took a sip. His face twisted behind the rim.

“Are you betrothed?”

Remus choked and spluttered—Sirius smacked him twice on the back and turned on his most innocent smile when he was met with a halfhearted glare. “No, I am not betrothed. We don't do that here. Why do you ask?”

“James was curious.”

Remus raised his eyebrows and glanced across the ballroom, where James was clearly struggling to escape a conversation with an elderly Middle Kingdom general. “He’s not really my type, unfortunately.”

“Tragic. He had his heart set on you, you know. He’ll be devastated.”

“I can’t say I hope he recovers," Remus said mildly, waving to James as he desperately signaled to Sirius for help. "I have a reputation as a real heartbreaker around here.”

“Do you?”

“Oh, yeah, the old women and the twelve-year-olds are just falling all over themselves.” They glanced at each other, then dissolved into laughter. Remus had a nice laugh, though it was a bit shy. Sirius wondered whether his lips would be just as sweet.

“Really, though, James wanted to make sure you weren’t promised to someone,” he said as soon as he got his composure back. “I think he was worried I would accidentally end the political world with a bit of flirting.”

“Wouldn’t that be something.” Remus leaned against the windowsill, letting out a long breath. “It’s nice to have visitors. We’re not generally fond of strangers, but the council mixes things up and gives the pack something to look at other than squirrels.”

“I meant to ask about that. Why are your dogs so…”

“Gigantic? Toothy? Generally a bit frightening?” Remus finished for him.

“Exactly.”

“First of all, they’re not dogs, they’re wolves. And second of all, they’re not really wolves, either.”

“Thanks, that clears it up.”

“They’re called direwolves,” Remus said with a snort. “They’re like regular wolves, but bigger and stronger, and we train them with our warriors. They’re sacred. It's why they're our sigil.” He gestured to the flags bearing the shape of a snarling wolf’s head that hung from the eaves.

“Is that why your capital is called ‘Varghal’? It means ‘wolf den’, right?” Sirius smiled as Remus gave him a look of surprise. “Hey, I know things.”

A secretive smile crossed his face for a half-second. “Yeah, that’s mostly why.”

“Remus! There you are, sweetheart.” Queen Hope glided toward them from the end of the table with a warm smile before Sirius could inquire further. “Hello, Sirius, how are you?”

Sirius bowed to her. “I’m doing well, Queen Hope. The feast is outstanding, and your son is an excellent conversationalist.”

“Your father wants to speak with you for a moment,” Hope tugged on the edge of Remus’ cloak and inclined her head toward the other side of the room, where a crowd of noblemen were gathered. King Lyall stood out from the others—he was the strongest by far, and nearly the tallest.

“See you later?” Sirius asked as the queen began shepherding him away.

A soft blush, much different than the flickering hints of mischief from before, spread across Remus’ cheeks. “Sure.”

Whatever King Lyall wanted to talk about, it must have been important, because he kept Remus in the group for close to an hour. By the time he was done, Sirius was consoling James after a failed attempt at wooing a young woman with fiery red hair.

“She’s justso beautiful,” James mourned with his chin propped on his arms as he watched her chat with Dorcas at another table. She was indeed quite pretty, and her plain green dress showed off the muscle on her arms. “And smart, too. Nobody’s ever insulted me so thoroughly in such a short amount of time.”

“I think we need to have a talk about your turn-ons, Jamie,” Sirius said sympathetically, patting him on the back. “Generally, when someone insults you, you don’t keep pursuing them.”

James thumped his forehead on the table with a muffled noise of distress.

“Excuse me.” A warm hand touched Sirius’ shoulder. “Could I steal you for a dance?”

His stomach leaped as James slowly raised his head again. “Absolutely, your highness.”

Remus paused, then glanced down with a spark of humor on his lips. “Oh, and James? I’m not betrothed, though I appreciate your interest.”

The mortified flush that spread beneath James’ dark skin was something Sirius would treasure for the rest of his life as he allowed himself to be pulled along by the hand. “Is this a good time to mention that I don’t know how to do any formal Northern dances?”

Remus flashed him a quick smile and grabbed his other wrist. “You’ll catch on.”

Dancing in Varghal was very different than dancing in Silvalith or Harindvar. The Western dances of his childhood were stiff and formal with careful steps and little rhythm, while the Eastern dances were mostly group-oriented or done by trained dancers who swayed to the music. Therefore, Sirius was not expecting to be grabbed by the elbow and spun around in a few tight circles by a giggling little girl in a yellow dress before she passed him off to the old woman who had fixed his collar and disappeared into the mass of bodies.

He got the hang of the dance pretty quickly; partners swung each other in close spirals before joining up with someone new, and once in a while the group would clap along to the jaunty music or form a set of wide circles that ducked and wove within one another. Marlene and Dorcas whirled by him a few times, smiling freely and glimmering in the torchlight—quite the pair, he thought for the second time that night.

Twice, he caught Remus’ eye and tried to move toward him, but both times they were snagged by other partners before they could meet in the middle. The style of dancing was pure, unbridled fun that rose to a fever pitch as the song began to crescendo. Sirius was a bit dizzy from all the turning until a slender hand closed around his own and Remus’ amber eyes, alight with joy, locked onto his own. He had never noticed the deep brown ring around the outside and found he couldn’t look away.

They spun together, wrists and elbows linked, dipping in and out in a wild pattern until the final note struck and Sirius found them chest-to-chest, breathless. They were both panting and a little bit sweaty; Remus’ pupils were blown wide and his mouth was turned up in a faint smile. The air between them hummed with somethingwonderful—all it would take was a single step from either of them, and their lips would brush. Sirius closed his eyes.

“Friends and countrymen!” King Lyall’s voice boomed out over the crowd, hushing all the dancers. Remus quickly stepped away and Sirius followed suit, squeezing his hand once before returning to his seat. “It is a true honor to host you all for this year’s Council. This is a time for fostering unity and forming new friendships with one another, and I hope this week’s meetings will leave us all ushering in another year of peace and prosperity.”

The hall rang with cheers and applause as people mobbed the royals for a handshake or a quick conversation, and it soon became clear that Remus would be occupied for the rest of the night.Downsides of being a prince, Sirius thought wryly as he followed James out of the hall, past Dorcas who had dozed off on Marlene’s shoulder.

“Oh, f*ck,” Sirius blurted as they entered the night. His breath hung suspended in front of him in a pure white cloud. “It’scold.”

James quipped some muffled agreement from the depths of his coat, but Sirius couldn’t hear much of it over the rushing wind. They hurried through the fresh ankle-deep snow toward the Eastern Coast lodge, shivering as they slammed the door shut and peeled away their outer layers; James flexed his fingers with a pained expression. “I don’t know how I’ll survive a week here.”

“With plenty of warm drinks and long sleeves. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to try and crowbar my boots off before they become part of my skin. Sweet dreams.” A huge yawn crackled Sirius’ jaw and he trudged into his small room to scrounge up some pajamas. The number of blankets and furs on the bed had seemed excessive during the daytime, but he was eternally grateful for them as wind whistled through the top of the door a few feet from his bed. He pulled on two nightshirts and his thickest pair of socks, then burrowed beneath the covers and dozed off to the familiar sound of James rummaging in the adjacent room.

Sirius awoke to a scratching at the door. The wind had increased in volume since he had fallen asleep and cold leeched through the rabbit fur near his exposed foot. He paused, staring at the stone ceiling until the scratching came again, followed by a pitiful whine.Dog?he thought, still half-asleep.Cold dog, poor baby.

Before he could wake up enough to question his decision-making skills, he was out of bed and crossing the small room, where a soft thump against the wood broke his heart. He wouldn’t wish the blizzard on anyone, least of all an innocent puppy.

The lock was stubborn, but it came free after a moment and the door swung open; the resulting blast of frigid air startled him into full consciousness with a muffled curse. It was still pitch-black outside and he took half a second to wonder at the time before a fuzzy shape darted past his legs and into the room. “What the—” Sirius shoved the door closed and locked it tight, still trying to get his bearings as wind-burned numbness prickled his cheeks. “Um. Hello.”

A spray of cold water hit him full in the face as the beast shook itself out and sat down, co*cking its head. Sirius cleared his throat and dried his eyes on his sleeve.So much for sleep.

“I would really like to go to bed, so if you’re going to stay, please be quiet.”

It huffed, sending a puff of warm air at the center of his stomach.

“You’re not a dog, and not a wolf. You certainly look like one, though." He narrowed his bleary eyes at it and sat down on the woven rug, wracking his brain for the right term.A sigil, or something about a symbol...? “Direwolf! That’s what you are!” The direwolf’s tail thumped against the ground and Sirius held his hand out with a clicking noise, like he used to for strays back home. “Here, puppy! C’mere!”

The direwolf stood up again—the thing was even bigger now that he was on its level, which did nothing to quell the nervousness running just beneath his skin like lightning—and stepped closer, tentatively sniffing Sirius’ fingers. It backed up when he reached out to pet it and growled low in its throat, a warning sound that sent ice down his spine.

“Sorry, sorry, my fault. Nice puppy.” He took a deep breath and turned his hand palm-up, then closed his eyes. “There. I can't grab at you if I can’t see you.”

There was a moment of quiet, punctuated by theclick-clackof nails on the ground and gentle whuffs, before something cold and wet touched Sirius’ palm and nudged it back. He cracked one eye open and found the direwolf face-to-face with him; its muzzle was pressed flush to his hand, revealing the stripes of dark fur that marked a path to its eyes.

“Oh.” All the breath rushed from his lungs. The wolf nosed along his arm and pushed its forehead into his hand, rubbing back and forth. “Do you want pats? You’re a good boy, aren’t you? Good boy!”

He reached up to scratch behind its ears and the wolf went boneless, flopping on top of him and sending them both to the floor with anoof.

“You’re a lot heavier than you look,” Sirius grunted as he lifted his head off the ground and nearly touched noses with it. The wolf’s head weighed down his collarbones, making it all but impossible to get up on his own. “As much as I enjoy being warm, you’re crushing my ribcage and I really am quite tired.”

The wolf blew a long, damp breath right up his nose.

“Thanks.” After a moment longer, Sirius wiggled around until his arms were free and pushed at the general area of the wolf’s shoulders, careful not to hit any sensitive spots. Its teeth were a bit too close to his jugular, in his personal opinion. “Up you go, beastie. Come on. Bedtime.”

Air flooded back into his lungs as the wolf stood and shook itself out, then hopped right up on Sirius’ bed like he owned the place. Un-f*cking-believable, Sirius thought as he stared at it with no small amount of bafflement.

“That wasn’t an invitation, but alright.” The direwolf lowered its head to its paws and watched him with dark golden eyes, blinking once in a silent challenge. “I have the sinking suspicion you’re going to eat me when you look at me like that.”

He took a moment to sort out the tangled pile of blankets before settling in; soon, he was cuddled up beneath a mound of once-warm furs while doing his damned best to ignore the large carnivorous beast laying at his feet. The second his eyelids began to droop, the direwolf whined.

“I’m trying really hard not to kick you off this bed,” he whispered. It whined again and Sirius stifled his groan in the pillow. He didn’t bother sitting up; all his resolve melted away as the wolf stared at him with the saddest puppy eyes he had ever seen. “Alright, come on.”

The direwolf shuffled forward and burrowed under the covers, kicking Sirius a handful of times. It looked at him a bit suspiciously as it emerged on the opposite side of the bed, like it was waiting for him to change his mind.

"Did you know you’re a sacred symbol here?” The wolf shifted a bit closer. “In my opinion, sacred symbols should be a little more considerate of what time they come calling on sleeping people.”

It wagged its tail and wiggled over a few more inches.

“You smell like wet dog and your fur is still damp from the snow. I’m not snuggling you.” Sirius turned on his side and shut his eyes, far too tired to deal with overgrown puppies.

The direwolf pawed at his shoulder and nearly tipped him over the side of the bed.

“Stop that.”

Another paw.

“Stop it, I’m trying to sleep!”

Apparently, the wolf’s thin shred of patience ran out, because the next thing Sirius felt was a freezing cold nose pressing against the back of his neck. “Hey!”

“Sir'us?” James’ groggy voice made them both go stock-still. “Who’re you talking to?”

“A direwolf broke into my room and now it’s trying to cuddle me," he answered, raising his voice just enough to be heard without waking Fleamont or Euphemia in the furthest room. "Or possibly eat me. Go back to sleep.”

“Right then, sweet dreams.” They waited for a few beats of silence before snoring floated through the shared door once again. Chances were, he wouldn’t remember a thing in the morning.

Sirius rolled onto his back and let his head fall toward the direwolf. “You shouldn’t be here when morning comes. I’m sure your warrior friends are going to miss you, though you don’t seem like much of a fighter.”

Gingerly, without breaking eye contact, the wolf laid its nose on Sirius’ shoulder, weighing him down like a heavy blanket. He smiled and gave it another scratch behind its tawny ears, then began to time his breathing with the wolf's steady huffs. Within a few minutes, he was asleep.

The direwolf was gone when Sirius woke, though he had no idea how it had gotten out. The only evidence that it existed at all was a handful of tan-and-white fur scattered along the sheets and Sirius’ outer nightshirt. “Weird,” he muttered under his breath as he dug around in his rucksack for regular clothing. In times of unexplainable events, it was always best to either blame James or ignore it entirely. If Varghal had magic dogs, that was none of Sirius’ business.

Breakfast was a quick affair of berries and salted meats alongside a mug of hot chocolate that Sirius savored for nearly ten minutes. It wasn’t spiced like the kind they drank in Harindvar, but instead dark and smooth as it coated his tongue. The wooden clock on the wall finally motivated him to leave the comfort of the lodge and head out into the village, where he made a beeline for the armory.

“Jamie, you in there?” he called as he walked around the side of the building.

“Back here!”

Sirius followed the voice and found James taking careful aim at a target on the other side of a large arena. “Your first meeting is in fifteen minutes.”

“I know.”

“You should get going.”

“I will.”

“James. Your mum brought me here for a reason and I don't want to get in trouble because you were making eyes at a hunk of wood.”

The arrow embedded itself next to several of its kin and James drew another without sparing a glance at Sirius. “I’m always on time, don’t worry. Look, this bow has a different curve than mine, so it’s got more power over less distance. See how well the arrows stick? It’s really beautiful work.”

“I’m sure it is. Unless you want me to give it a whirl, you should go to your meeting.”

James lowered the bow and looked at him in horror. “If you evenbreatheon this masterpiece, I will maim you.”

“That’s what I thought. Come on, you can ogle the curve of the bow later.” He linked their elbows and practically dragged James away from the target lineup—honestly, the boy was hopeless when it came to archery, Sirius couldn’t take him anywhere—and they trudged toward the meeting tent through a thin layer of snow that threatened to freeze their toes off. As Fleamont and Euphemia’s ward, he remained under their guardianship, but he wasn't allowed at any important council meetings. The only real downside to being friends with the heirs of nearly every country on the continent was that they were required to sit in those same meetings without him. “I’m going to go find Pete. We’ll be in the main hall when you’re done.”

James sighed through his nose and passed the bow and quiver into his outstretched hands. “Save me a seat?”

“Always,” Sirius assured him, knocking their temples together. He caught only a glimpse of the round table in the large, flat meeting lodge before the door closed and he was left alone in the snow. People went about their days all around him as he headed back to the armory and returned the bow and arrows to their proper place; there was a quiet pulse to Varghal, a sense of purpose and unity humming beneath the frosty ground.

“Sirius! Hey!”Speak of the devil.

“Pete!” Sirius opened his arms for a tight hug, clapping him on the back. “How’ve you been? We couldn’t find you yesterday before the feast.”

Peter flushed red against his sandy hair. “Ah, sorry, I lost track of time. I started a new book that I just couldn’t—oh! You haven’t met Lily, have you?”

“Lily?”

“She was at the party last night, hang on." Peter took him by the arm and hurried toward the blacksmith’s shop. “Lily! D'you have a second?”

“Yeah, why?” Sirius just barely managed to contain his shock as the girl who had so utterly rejected James at the party emerged, holding an axe in one hand and a whetting stone in the other. From her vaguely irritated expression, she remembered him as well. “Aren’t you friends with the idiot who hit on me?”

“Unfortunately.” Sirius extended a hand to her. “I’m Sirius, and the idiot was James. You really broke his heart.”

Lily gave him a suspicious look. “I’m not going to apologize.”

“I didn’t expect you to. He needs a little humbling now and then, and I can only do so much to chip away at the ego.”

Peter beamed at them. “Sirius, Lily is the best dominoes player I’ve ever met.”

“Really?” Sirius raised an eyebrow at the redhead. “Should I take that as a personal challenge?"

“We’ll just have to see, won’t we?” Lily sheathed her axe at her hip and started walking toward the main hall. “Looks like I’ve got a title to win.”

In less than two hours, Lily cemented her place as one of Sirius’ favorite people. She was funny, smart, and kicked their asses at every single game they played until he finally gave in and started placing his pieces with his eyes closed in the hope that a higher power would intervene justonce.

“Lily?” James’ voice cracked horribly from the doorway. “But you’re—why are you here?”

“Is that an existential question or a literal one?” she asked without looking up from the board. “Currently, I’m here to crush your friends at checkers.”

“It's witchcraft,” Sirius groaned as she took his last piece.

“It'sskill,” she shot back with a wicked grin. “I believe you owe me something, good sir.”

He heaved a sigh and climbed on the tabletop, suddenly grateful that the hall was empty, save for their table and a handful of maids. “Lily Evans is the most wonderful, talented, and beautiful person to ever grace this land.”

Peter clapped politely from his seat. “A true statement if I’ve ever heard one.”

“Thanks for the victory, boys. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have actual work to do.” Lily patted their shoulders and strolled out of the hall, brushing past James as she went without a backward glance.

“That’s the love of my life right there," James said faintly as soon as she was out of earshot. "She could murder me with that axe and I’d thank her."

“Keep bothering her and you might get your wish,” Marlene teased, plopping herself down at the game table. “Pete, roll it back, would you?”

The checkers game, along with several others, stayed active for much of the day as the four royals ducked in and out of meetings. He traded glances with Remus across the table whenever Dorcas dragged him along, and the thrill never faded; Remus was quieter in the larger group, but he seemed to relax as the hours passed. Sirius found himself wishing he had been able to attend the official Councils in the past, just for the comfort of having so many of his friends in one place.

The downtime between meetings quickly became Sirius’ favorite part of the day; whether he was sandwiched next to Remus around a game of pebble toss or mock-dueling Marlene in the arena behind the armory, he felt the bonds of friendship blossoming between the seven of them with each new inside joke and victory. Lily was the oldest at 23, and Peter the youngest, having just turned 21—by the fifth day, Sirius found himself wondering whether they would be able to come for his birthday party in a couple of months.

The sixth and final day of the council dawned without afternoon meetings for any of the heirs, leaving them free and clear to enjoy the maximum amount of sunlight. “I have an idea,” Remus said as soon as they had finished a lunch of jerky and roasted greens with cedar tea that left Sirius drowsy and warm. He was uncharacteristically excited, his usual focus giving way to visible anticipation as he led them to a rickety shed on the outside of the city.

“I need one shoe from each of you,” he said, pulling a half-frozen padlock off the door. Had anyone else taken him into the frozen wilderness and asked to borrow a shoe, Sirius would have laughed in their face; for Remus, however, all his logic went flying out the window. It was almost embarrassing how fast his left boot came off.

“What’s he doing in there?” Dorcas asked as she balanced on one leg and rubbed blood flow back into her stocking-clad foot. “I’ll lose my toes if he takes much longer.”

“I can hear you!” a muffled voice called.

“Good! Give me my shoe!”

Remus appeared a moment later with a collection of strange boots hanging off his arms. “I have something better, you ungrateful hellion.”

“Are these…knife shoes?” Marlene took her pair and squinted at the blades someone had welded to the soles.

“They’re ice skates. Don’t put them on now!” He shooed Sirius’ hand away. “We have a bit of a walk first.”

‘A bit of a walk’ turned out to be a twenty-minute trek through the forest that left them all simultaneously sweaty and numb, but it was worth it when they broke through a dense patch of bushes. A wide lake coated in a thick layer of clean ice stretched out through a deep valley, almost to the horizon. It was unlike anything Sirius had ever seen; patches of snow rested along the edges and gleamed in the afternoon sun, making the whole thing shine like a frosted mirror.

“It’s beautiful,” Lily murmured.

“Alright, you can put them on now.” Remus was already lacing up his skates with a flush on his pale cheeks.

The skates fit differently than normal shoes and it was a real struggle to get them on properly; a quick glance around told Sirius that he was not the only one having issues. Still, he was the first to get his on and stepped confidently onto the ice, then immediately fell flat on his back with a yelp.

“Maybe you should try hanging onto a branch first,” Remus suggested from further out, sounding far too amused. “It’s easy once you get the hang of it.”

Sirius wobbled to his feet as air returned to his lungs, feeling for all the world like a newborn deer taking its first steps. His left skate slid straight out from under him and he clutched the bough of a low-hanging tree for dear life with a choked curse. Ahead of him, Remus was gliding along the ice in smooth curves like he had been born for it.

Looks easy enough. Sirius planted his right foot and pushed off with his left, skidding forward. A surprised laugh bubbled out of his chest. “I did it!”

“How?” James grumbled to his left, where he was half-dangling off a branch.

“You step, plant your foot, and then push off with the other.” Sirius let go of the branch and began making his way towards the center of the lake on unsteady legs. His momentum carried him forward without a lot of extra pushing, though his knees were bowed inwards and his ankles were already starting to ache, and soon he was headed straight for Remus. “Wait, sh*t, I don’t know how to stop! Remus, m—!”

Remus’ eyes widened a half-second before Sirius slammed into him, sending them both to the ice with a clatter and a squawk. “Ow,” Remus groaned beneath him as they laid in a heap.

“Sorry.” He tried to stand up again, but only succeeded in falling over again and elbowing Remus in the kidney, making them both wince.

“Stop, stop—stopmoving before you break something.” Remus grabbed his shoulders and slid him off onto the ice like a dead seal, then stood in one graceful step and hauled him up with a hand on his wrist and upper arm. "You turn your skates to stop, alright? Here, hold onto me and I’ll show you.”

Sirius listed to the side and gripped the hollow of Remus’ elbow for support. “Ice is a lot harder than dirt.”

“I won’t let you fall.”

A chord struck deep in Sirius’ chest and he looked up from his feet. Remus held his gaze for a moment before looking away; a faint redness crept up his neck and a firework thrill sparked in Sirius’ stomach.I could lean in right now and kiss him. It wouldn’t take much. I’ll risk falling for that.

“Remus?” Lily’s palpable frustration cut through the whirring in his head. Their moment melted away. “We could use a hand.”

Timing, Lily. Remus released his forearms and skated over to Lily and James, who had managed to lock their skates together when they fell; after taking a moment to collect his thoughts, Sirius made his wobbly way back to the shore and sat down in the snow with a silent huff of annoyance. Strike two, he thought.

Marlene skidded to a stop, using the branches for support before sitting down on the bank and scooting over until she could link her fingers with Dorcas’. They shared a significant look and Sirius’ heart stuttered. “Guys?” she began. “We have something to tell you.”

Lily and James’ bickering fell silent as Dorcas bit her lip around a smile. “Everyone will know at dinner, but we wanted you to know first.”

Peter covered his mouth. “No.”

“Yes,” Marlene said with a beaming smile as Dorcas held up their hands, revealing silver and gold bracelets that had been hidden beneath their thick winter clothes. “We’re engaged!”

Sirius’ jaw dropped as Lily shrieked and tried to stand, paying no mind to James as he was dragged along the ice behind her. “You didn’t tell me on the whole trip here!” Peter protested around his smile as he tossed a loose handful of snow at them.

“It was a surprise!” Marlene laughed.

“How long?” Sirius demanded as he pulled his skates off for better traction, ignoring the way the wind bit through his thick socks.

“Two weeks.” Dorcas looked over at her girlfriend—fiancée, Sirius corrected—with soft, dreamy eyes. “Our parents approved it a while ago, but we figured now was as good a time as any to let you all know.”

Seven voices tripped over each other and their hosts quickly followed, until they laid in a pile of limbs and laughter on the shore. Sirius wanted to bottle the feeling of laying side-by-side with his best friends as they giggled like twelve-year-olds and escaped their looming responsibilities for one perfect afternoon.

Out on the frozen lake, nobody cared who ran what country, or what the politicians were saying, or what the future would look like. They could just be together, letting seven hearts beat as one.

That night, Sirius awoke to the sound of screaming.

He stumbled out of bed and shook off the last bits of sleep as he pulled on the nearest clothes he could reach. Metal clanged against metal outside and fear bolted through his heart; he buckled his sword around his waist with clumsy fingers before shouldering through the door between rooms. “James!” he shouted, yanking back the bedsheets. The bed was empty and Sirius went cold. “James!”

“I’m here!” Relief coursed through him as James’ silhouette appeared in the doorway to his parents’ room with an arrow nocked; in the torchlight from the window, his face was gray. “Mum and Dad are gone!”

An acrid smell filled Sirius’ nostrils as he hurried across the room; in his periphery, he saw smoke billowing through the door to his bedroom. He forced the front door open and stumbled back as the hooves of a huge Middle Kingdom carriage horse reared up before it bolted toward the woods. “Where would they go?” he called over the noise, drawing his sword.

“I don’t know, I heard wood splintering and—” James swung around and sent his arrow into the body of a black-clad man with a knife chasing a screaming young woman. Sirius took his place at James’ back—they had never fought a real battle before, but he knew where he needed to be.

Black smoke billowed into the night sky and choked the air as the wall went up in flames; the wolves and warriors lining the top had become smudges of shadow in the chaos. Sirius knocked an arrow aside with the flat of his sword, tasing bitter adrenaline on his tongue and teeth. Bodies already laid in the snow, turning it dark. “I don’t see them!”

The gate shuddered and groaned as more raiders poured through the bottleneck, roaring incoherent battle cries. A hand closed around Sirius’ bicep and he spun around, already bringing his sword down in a deadly arc, only for a cold hand to catch his wrist before the stroke connected. “You have to leave right now!” Remus ordered. His face was smeared with ash and blood.

“We have to find my parents!” James argued, picking off another raider from the crowd.

Cold fear oozed down Sirius’ spine. “Where are the others?”

“In a secret passage in the woodpile. Marlene and Dorcas couldn’t find their parents, either.” Remus released his wrist and grabbed James’ elbow, leading them both around the side of the lodge and toward the edge of the woods, but James pulled away and nocked his bow once more.

That’s no coincidence, Sirius thought.Three sets of royals going missing in the heat of an ambush?

Two forks in the road laid out like playing cards in his mind as his pulse hammered in his ears; he could pull away with James and search through the battlefield for the only people who protected him in his hour of need, or he could shield his newfound friends as they fled a doomed city. He knew how to fight, but James wouldn’t survive with just his bow. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes. "I'm so sorry," he whispered, sheathing his sword.

“Let go of me!” James snarled as Sirius grabbed him around the waist and dragged him back toward the passage. Remus ran ahead and drew the cover aside, revealing Lily, Peter, Marlene, and Dorcas huddled together in the dark. “Sirius, get the f*ck off me!”

“Follow the passage and take a left at the first fork.” Remus chanced a look over his shoulder as he pushed them all inside. “It’ll take a day or two, but you’ll end up at the border to the Middle Kingdom. Lily, can you take it from there?”

Lily’s grip tightened on her axe. “I can.”

“Good.”

Horrible understanding seized Sirius’ heart and he caught Remus’ hand as he pulled away. “You’re not coming with us?”

Remus looked down at their hands, then up at Sirius’ face. “This is my home. I can’t just—”

“Remus!” All seven of them jumped as King Lyall emerged from the heat of battle, his sword drawn and dripping already. “What are you still doing here? Get out!”

“What?” Remus dropped Sirius’ hand and rocked back like he’d been hit. “I’m staying here.”

“You need to lead them out.”

“I can fight—”

“No!” Lyall interrupted. “You will take them out of the city and that’s my final word.”

“I won't abandon my people!" Remus said, his voice breaking. “Da, I won’t leave you.”

Lyall reached forward and placed a heavy hand on Remus' shoulder. “Fight hard. Be brave. Get to Glastam and tell the royal family what happened.” Noise erupted behind him as the great wall came crashing down in a fiery blaze and raiders flooded into the city. A pack of direwolves burst from the Great Hall, baying and snarling.

“Da, you know I can—” Remus’ plea cut off as Lyall lifted his sword and, with a last look to his son, charged into the fray. He disappeared into the smoke within seconds.

A few thundering heartbeats of silence passed before Dorcas reached out and touched Remus’ arm. “Re, we need to go.”

He looked down at them, his beautiful amber eyes drowning in terror and despair, then back at Varghal.He’s going to stay, Sirius thought.He’s going to stay and he’s going to die.Remus took a deep, shaking breath and turned around, pushing the six of them into the tunnel.

Sirius could still hear the direwolves howling as the night enveloped them.

Chapter 4: Running With No Place to Land

Chapter Text

No one spoke for a long time. Sirius couldn’t get the scent of the burning wall out of his nose, even after peeling off his heavy coat and sweating so much he nearly drowned in it. James’ breathing finally steadied after an hour, maybe two—it was hard to tell in the pitch blackness of the tunnel. Marlene and Dorcas whispered to each other now and then, little check-ins that made Sirius’ heart ache at their unquestioned love. Had it only been that afternoon that they went ice skating?

Remus walked silently ahead of the group, leading them with an air of ‘speak and you die’ that was completely incomprehensible to Sirius. He had only known Remus for a week, during which he had been funny, sweet, and mischievous; this frosty, shut-down prince was a whole different person.

His home was just attacked, Sirius reminded himself.He losteverything.

“We’ll settle down here for the night," Remus said at last. Marlene immediately slid to the ground with a slow sigh and began prying her left boot off. “I wouldn’t do that unless you want to lose a foot to frostbite.”

Marlene and Peter shared a worried glance, but she put the boot on again. The ring of metal echoed around the low ceiling as they unloaded their weapons from their backs and hips, forming a pile of sharp objects in the middle of the group.Axe, bows, quivers, spear, swords, knives, Sirius counted internally as he squinted in the low light of the torch on the wall.At least we came prepared.

“We don’t have any money,” Lily pointed out in a quiet voice. He closed his eyes. “Or food, or clothes, or anything to start a fire with.”

Remus bundled his coat up and curled onto his side, facing away from the rest of them. Visible tension lined every plane of his body. “We’ll return tomorrow, once everything has calmed down and it’s safe.”

Something unspoken hung heavy in the air above them before Dorcas bit her lip. “Remus, I’m not sure—”

“Don’t.” Sirius flinched at his tone; even the unsettling monotony from before was better than that hoarse, broken snap. “Just—please, just don’t.”

They spent the rest of the night—morning?Sirius still wasn't sure—in silence. He slept fitfully, in short bursts that always ended in flames and shouting. James, the heaviest sleeper he knew, was awake every time he opened his eyes, propped against the tunnel wall next to him. Sirius eventually gave in and stayed up with him.

How could it all have gone so wrong? The Council was a time for peace among the nations, where they could settle their differences and discuss important issues in a civil manner. It was not a time to show off wealth or status, and especially not one for violence. Sirius was suddenly and fiercely glad that the monarchs of Silvalith and the Middle Kingdom had sent representatives instead—if something happened to their parents, at least the seven of them could seek help elsewhere.

Sirius took a shallow breath and shook his head to banish the thought. No. He couldn’t imagine that. They would go back in the morning and everything would be fine. Fleamont and Euphemia would be justfine,because he didn’t know what he would do if they were gone forever.

“What are you thinking about?” James asked, barely above a murmur.

“It’s cold,” Sirius said.Not entirely a lie. “My hands are freezing.”

“Here.” There was a shuffling sound and a warm weight settled onto his shoulders. “Better?”

“I have my own coat, Jamie, you need this.”

“Just take it, it’s fine.”

Sirius sighed and wrapped his arm around James’ back, pulling him under the coat as well. “There, now we can both be warm.”

After a heartbeat, James let out a long, trembling exhale that hitched somewhere in his throat. “I’m scared,” he whispered. “I wish I knew where they were.”

“Me, too. I’m not sorry I pulled you out of there.”

“I know. I’m not happy that you did, but…thank you.”

“That’s what I’m here for.” Sirius tightened his hold and pressed his head to James’ temple, a grounding anchor in the upside-down world they were suddenly living in. “You’re my best friend, James. It’s my job to keep you safe.”

“Whatever happens after this, we'll do it together, alright? We’re a team.”

Sirius had a sinking feeling that getting out of Frystmark would not be their greatest challenge, that this was only the beginning of the journey. From the rapid pace of James’ heartbeat and the heaviness in his voice, he knew he felt the same. “A team.”

They sat in the darkness together for a while after that, but it didn’t take long for the others to wake or simply give up on faking sleep. “Everyone ready?” Remus asked. Various murmurs of assent answered him, and then they were off again.

Based on the sun’s position and Sirius’ estimation, it was late afternoon when they emerged in the middle of the snow-covered forest and began moving south along the bank of a wide, frothing river. He had forgotten how loud the woods were; squirrels and birds chirruped at one another and the trees creaked in the wind, forming gentle music with thehush-rush-hushof the water.

“What’s that?” Peter asked, pointing to a spiral of black smoke ahead. Momentary fear spiked in Sirius’ blood before the top of a river-rock chimney appeared on the other side of the hill.

“It’s a village called Hemgard. We can get food and proper sleep there,” Remus said flatly.

“We still don’t have money for room and board,” Lily piped up, gesturing to her empty pockets. “And none of you really look like royals, to be honest.”

Sirius looked down at his own dirt-streaked, mismatched clothes and the stripes of charcoal on his sleeves where he had tried to scrub ashes from his face. They had no proof that they were anything other than a band of heavily armed ragamuffins wandering about.

Ragamuffins…

If Sirius had a knack for one thing in life besides being a damn good friend, he could boost a group’s morale like his life depended on it. He liked to think it was because of his endless supply of charisma and natural flair for the dramatic, but honestly it came down to the ability to throw away any and all dignity at the drop of a hat.

Or, in this case, the drop of a tambourine.

“Hey, Marlene?” he called as the beginnings of a plan formed in his head. “How’s Bluebell doing these days?”

“Bluebell?” Marlene co*cked her head, but a moment later her face brightened in understanding. The heavy, bruise-colored bags under her eyes softened and a familiar troublemaking spark emerged. “Oh, I think she’s doing splendidly. How’s Padfoot, that dashing rapscallion?”

“Have they gone mad?” Lily muttered to Dorcas, who rolled her eyes.

“Padfoot has an excellent idea of how to make some money today, if Bluebell would be so kind as to be a part of his endeavors,” Sirius said, slinging one arm over Marlene’s shoulders and forcing a cheerful smile onto his face. It was time to bring an end to the melancholy cloud that hung over them all. “He would behopelesswithout his partner.”

“He’d be hopeless either way,” James called behind them with a light laugh.

Peter groaned. “As long as you don’t do the bit about the fishmonger’s kid, I’ll be fine.”

A wicked smile spread across Sirius’ face. “Why not?”

“It’s filthy!”

“I know, isn’t it wonderful?”

“You’re not talking about‘The Fishmonger’s Daughter’, are you?” Remus asked, finally turning to face them.

There was a beat of surprised silence before Marlene, the absolute angel, saved the day. “That’s the one!”

“Oh, that one’sawful.” Remus’ cold shoulder thawed into a thoughtful look. “It’s the perfect cover.”

Miracle of miracles, the innkeeper owned a spare luteanda tambourine. The tavern was packed with people—Sirius would have been surprised if he wasn’t so busy being grateful for more chances at earning a handful of coins. “The stage is rather small, dear Padfoot, but I believe it will suffice,” Marlene sighed theatrically, tuning the lute by ear.Side effects of years of royal music training, she had told him when they first began their little venture.I suppose it has its perks after all.

Sirius cleared his throat and shook his tambourine; the chatter quieted as all eyes turned on them. “Oh, fishmonger, oh, fishmonger, come quell your daughter’s hunger,” he sang smoothly, feeling the familiar rhythm set in. It was indeed a truly filthy song, but every time they played it, the audience ate it up.

His voice grew stronger as the song continued into the verses he and Marlene had invented, shaking off the rust from disuse and falling back into Padfoot, the roguish bard whose reputation was something of a legend among the farming towns of Tidoras. They couldn’t play on the Eastern Coast mainland, unfortunately—he was too well-known there and the nation was too small to be able to disappear among the crowds. Marlene, however, could easily get away with pretending to be a bard anywhere but the towns immediately outside of her court, and they took shameless advantage of that during every visit.

Soon, it was hard to hear them over the off-key singing and clapping of the crowd, who had begun tossing small coins into a plate Sirius slipped from a nearby table. At that rate, they would only need to do a few more songs to buy a cheap lunch and a single room for the night. By the time Marlene struck the final chord, even Peter looked amused at their table in the back. Dorcas stood on her seat to cheer for her fiancée, who took an extravagant bow and soaked up the applause like a sponge.

“Any requests?” Sirius shouted over the noise.

A chorus of muddled suggestions erupted from the patrons, but one voice came through loud and clear. “Barrett’s Privateers, if you think you can do it!” Lily hollered with a wide smile as she stood on her bench. It was comforting to see her in a good mood again.

“For the lovely lady in the back!” Marlene responded, striking up the first notes. “Oh, a letter of marque came from the king, to the scummiest vessel I’ve ever seen!”

As much as Sirius loved being the center of attention, Marlene had a penchant for sea shanties that he was only too happy to indulge. The energy of the room reached a new height when she stepped up onto a table, dancing around plates and goblets to the cheers of the patrons. Their table burst into whoops as she sang her heart out and Sirius caught Remus’ eye, winking once before joining her on her perch.

“The last of Barrett’spri-va-teers!” Marlene shouted along with a good portion of the tavern over raucous applause. Three songs later, their collection plates were heavy with coins, and they sauntered back to their booth with matching smiles.

“You absolute f*cking legends!” James crowed as Marlene slid onto Dorcas’ lap and planted a large kiss to her cheek. “I love it when you do that.”

“Lily, how did you know Barrett’s Privateers?” Remus asked, still quiet, but with a softer edge to his voice.

“It’s from Southern Frystmark, and my family lives near the border.” Lily shrugged, scooting aside so Peter could give their orders to the innkeeper and reserve a room upstairs. “It’s pretty popular back home.”

Sirius chanced a quick look at Remus; he seemed to be in slightly better spirits after hearing a song from his home. “Well, whatever the reason, thank you for earning us a grand total of…ten silver coins and fourteen coppers!Youare the real legend here.”

“I don’t know, your tambourine skills were quite impressive,” Lily teased, flicking a crumb at him. “Someone should help Peter before he drops all our drinks on himself.”

“I’ll get him.” Dorcas lifted Marlene off her lap and stood with a stretch that popped several parts of her back.

“So, how long has that been happening?” Remus asked, gesturing vaguely at Sirius and Marlene. “Seems a bit strange for two royals to moonlight as bards.”

“I’m not royal,” Sirius corrected on instinct. “Maz, Jamie, and I were adventuring in a little mining town near Courlion and found ourselves a few coins short of dinner, so she grabbed a lute, I grabbed a tambourine, and James hid in the corner until it was all over.”

“I was seventeen and mortally embarrassed!” James defended. “My friends had just hopped up on a table and started belting out swear words at the top of their lungs! What was I supposed to do?”

“Join in?” Marlene snorted as she took a mug of beer from Peter. “Pete, you’re a lifesaver. No offense, Remus, but your city’s got terrible ale.”

“Oh, I'm well aware,” Remus said, lifting his own in a toast. “It seems you need to be gigantic and burly to properly enjoy it.”

A pretty waitress returned to their table with deep bowls of soup and a flirtatious wink for James, who blushed to the tips of his ears until Sirius reached over and smacked the back of his hand with a spoon. “If you keep staring, I’ll eat your soup.”

He didn’t really register how hungry he was until he took a sip of watered-down stew—as soon as the first blooms of warmth filled his chest and the tang of salt sharpened his vision, he began shoveling it into his mouth with reckless abandon. He only glanced up once and was pleased to see that everyone else had abandoned any sense of propriety to scarf it down in total silence.

Peter surfaced first, wiping his mouth with the cuff of his sleeve and heaving a sigh. “Is anyone else incredibly tired?”

Dorcas yawned so loud her jaw crackled; Remus barely twitched when she leaned against him and closed her eyes. “Wake me when there’s more soup.”

“Alright, everyone, get up,” Lily pushed her chair back and groaned before standing, as if it took all of her willpower to move. “We didn’t rent a room for nothing.”

“I hope the stew wasn’t laced with something,” James muttered as he lazily slung his bow and quiver over his shoulder. “I’d feel really stupid if I died from eating poison soup.”

“None of us slept last night,” Sirius pointed out as they trouped up the rickety stairs and tumbled into their single room. “Huh. For the amount we paid, I was expecting worse.”

The room was tiny and devastatingly gray, but the mattress seemed soft enough as Lily and Dorcas dragged it onto the floor to act as a pillow, and there was a cute little window on the far wall that looked out over the town’s northern boundary. All seven of them stripped off their heavy coats and layered them into a large patchwork blanket before snuggling underneath in a pile. Sirius ended up with James on his right, Peter splayed across his legs, and Remus tucked beneath his left arm; he had never fallen asleep so fast and so hard in his life.

For the second time in twenty-four hours, Sirius awoke to the sound of screams. Except this time, he wasn’t alone; James’ hand collided with his face as he scrambled to his feet, upending Dorcas and nearly stomping on Peter as they were all dragged from unconsciousness rather abruptly.

“The f*ck’s going on?” Marlene asked blearily, grabbing her longsword off the bedframe.

“I don’t know, but I have a bad feeling it’s for us,” Sirius muttered. He slipped out of their room and tiptoed to the top of the staircase, where he peered through the railing at the tavern floor below. A heavy stone settled in his stomach—the door was hanging off one and half hinges and four people stood at the bar with their weapons clearly visible beneath long black cloaks. Masks covered the lower part of their faces, but Sirius could tell they were scanning the room.

“Where are they?” one snapped at the innkeeper. “Where are the royals?”

“What royals?” the poor man asked where he was wedged against the bar counter. His kind face was white with fear. “I swear, I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“Have you seen anyone dressed in finery lately? Has anyone paid in large coins?”

“No, nobody! Please, they aren’t here!”

“Stop asking stupid questions,” one of the raiders hissed. She crouched down to the innkeeper’s level and drew a long, thin knife. Her voice sounded familiar, though Sirius couldn’t quite place why it sent beetles crawling down his spine. “They would have been in a group of five, dirty and in their early twenties. Ring any bells?”

The innkeeper swallowed heavily as the knife’s tip pressed to his throat. “There—there was a group that came in earlier. Two bards and their friends. They rented a room upstairs for the afternoon. There were seven, not five, but—”

“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” the raider said, sickly sweet. She stood and landed a hard kick to the innkeeper’s ribs, then turned to her companions. “Find them.”

Sirius' stomach dropped and he hurried back down the hall, shutting and locking the door with as much haste and as little noise as he could manage. "Time to go," he grunted as he began shoving the poor excuse for a desk in front of it.

“What’s wrong?” James demanded, though he picked up the other side and braced it beneath the doorknob without hesitation.

“The raiders are back, and they’re here to kill us. Or capture us. Probably kill us. Either way, we should leave.”

“How well can everyone climb?” Marlene asked, eyeballing the distance to the ground from their window.

“Well enough.” Peter shoved it open with his shoulder and swung a leg over the edge.

Thankfully, the tavern had relatively low ceilings and they had rented a cheap second-floor room, so the drop was only about fifteen feet. “I really hate heights,” Lily groaned as she grabbed the windowsill once James reached the ground.

“Don’t worry, I’ll catch you,” he called up to her.

“I’ll pass.” Lily clambered down the side of the building with Dorcas hot on her heels. There was a loud crash from the room as the raiders broke through Sirius’ barricade and Dorcas fell the last eight feet or so, landing with a beautiful somersault.

“That was close,” she panted as she dusted herself off and tightened the buckle that kept her spear on her back. The six of them stared at her in shock.

“How did you do that?” Sirius asked faintly.

“I learned how to fall off a horse when I was five," she said with a shrug. "Not much different. At least the building isn’t moving.”

“Down there!” a harsh voice shouted from above.

“sh*t,” Peter muttered. “Remus, are we close to the border?”

“I don’t think that’s going to stop them,” Remus said as they took off at a brisk jog through the town square. “We’re not far, but—”

A gloved hand shot out of a shadowed alcove and grabbed Marlene; she shrieked once, then went quiet with a choked gasp as the edge of a knife pressed against her windpipe. “Shhh,” the raider crooned as he pulled her tight to his chest. A thin line of blood trickled down her neck and her eyes flared wide. “Stand down, unless you want to see her pretty throat open.”

“Heads up,” James warned as the rest of the raiders appeared from the side streets. Sirius drew his sword, but he kept his eyes steadily on Marlene as they formed a loose circle.You’ll be okay, you’ll be okay, you’ll be okay, he chanted in his head.

“Just hang on, love,” Dorcas said to his left. Marlene tried to nod, but the man grabbed her golden curls and yanked her head back further. Dorcas drew her bow, leveling an arrow at the raider’s face; there was no way she could get a clear shot, but the threat was obvious enough. “Let her go.Now.”

“King Riddle sends his regards,” the raider murmured into Marlene’s ear, angling his knife higher against her pulse point.

“And I send him mine,” she snarled. In one fluid motion, she stomped on his foot, twisted to the side, and jammed her free arm upward. The man released her instinctively with a sharp, shocked yelp and she stumbled backwards as he sank to the ground, frantically grabbing at the small blade embedded in his upper ribcage. His companions lunged forward, but their small group bristled with weapons as Marlene hurried to join their formation.

Sirius readjusted his grip on the hilt of his sword. “You alright?”

A few wet coughs came from the lump of black fabric before it went silent and limp. Marlene swallowed hard. “Never better.”

James’ bow creaked as he aimed for the nearest opponent. “Leave us alone or we’ll kill you all.”

The female raider laughed from the other side of the circle, a mad cackle that made Sirius nauseous. “Silly boy, you don’t know how to kill. You’ll have to do better than that if you want to play with the big kids.”

“You’re outnumbered seven to three. There’s no way you’ll make it out of here,” Peter said. One of the raiders shifted their weight and Sirius tensed, preparing to strike. It didn’t matter that he had never killed anyone before—he knew he would do it if it came down to protecting his friends.

The woman giggled, but she slid her knife back into the depths of her cloak. After a brief moment’s hesitation, the others followed suit. “Oh, this will be fun,” she leered, sounding smug even while admitting defeat. “Sleep with one eye open, bitty babies, or you’ll lose them both.”

With a final too-wide grin, she turned on her heel and all but sauntered into the gathering evening with her companions close behind. Sirius remained on high alert until they were out of sight, but Dorcas moved across their defensive circle as soon as the raiders were unarmed and engulfed her fiancée in a tight hug. “Is your neck alright?”

“It’s just a scratch,” Marlene assured her, accepting a quick kiss with a shaky smile.

Remus went to the body and retrieved the knife with a grimace. “Do you still want this?”

She went a little green around the gills when she saw it, but nodded and tucked it back into her wrist guard after wiping the blood off on her dress. “Who knows? It might come in handy again.”

Peter waved a hand at the crumpled man on the stoop. “What do we do about…”

“We can’t just leave him there,” James sighed. “Does anyone want to help me get him into the woods or something?”

“I’ve got the feet.” Sirius sheathed his sword and trudged to the doorway, locking his hands around the man’s ankles.Don’t think about the body, don’t think about the body, don’t think about the body. “Ugh, he’s heavy.”

“Well, he’s dead.” James made a face as he lifted the shoulders. “C’mon, this way.”

Sirius didn’t waste time being respectful as they hauled the man into the forest—it was hard to feel bad for someone who had tried to slit Marlene’s throat. They set him in the lee of a large rock and were just about to head back when a flash of emerald green caught his eye. “Hang on a second.”

“What’s wrong? Is he still alive?”

“No, Marlene got him good.” Sirius tugged at the patch until it ripped free. “Have a look at this.”

James frowned, then went still. “Oh. Oh, this is bad.”

“I know.”

“I mean,reallybad. As in, starting-a-war bad.”

“Silvalith’s representatives didn’t act weird at the meetings, right?” A silver snake stood out against the tattered edges where Sirius had torn it from the man’s shirt. “They don’t give out sigil badges to just anyone.”

James shook his head and handed the cloth back. “I would guess these guys are some sort of official assassins.”

“Which means the raiders…”

“Were probably soldiers.”

“f*ck.”

James snorted without humor, running a hand through his hair; he stared through the sparse woods for a moment before shaking his head. “Everything just got a lot more complicated. We should let the others know.”

“Let the others know what?” Lily asked as she crested the hill. “You’ve been up here for a while. We got worried.”

“I found this on our guy’s shirt,” Sirius said, passing her the sigil. “Look familiar?”

“Silvalith,” she muttered, tracing the snake’s curve. “They sent assassins after us? Why?”

“Not just assassins.” Sirius cast James a warning look, but James didn’t stop. “They were dressed the same as the raiders from last night. We think they might have been Silval soldiers.”

“I don’t understand,” Peter said, his brow furrowing. “I mean, my mum said the northern border of Tidoras has been chaotic lately, but those were conflicts between farmers. Why would they do something like this?”

“Frankly, I don’t give a f*ck about their motives,” Remus said lowly. If looks could kill, the badge would be little more than a pile of thread. “Silvalith just declared war on my country. I have to go make sure my family is safe.”

“But we’re not at the border yet,” Sirius protested. He had seen the number of soldiers that overwhelmed the city—didn’t Remus understand that there was only a slim chance Varghal was still standing? “We’ll be safer as a group.”

Lily laid a hand on his arm and her message was clear:don’t. “Remus, I can take them the rest of the way to the Middle Kingdom. If you need to find us again, we’ll be in a town called Bailey.”

“Thank you.” Remus paused for a second and looked at each of them in turn, suddenly somber. “I know I haven't been the most welcoming person in the past, but these last few days have been some of the best in my life. You're good people, and excellent friends.” The word sounded foreign in his mouth and Sirius recalled his comment from the welcome feast.The old women and twelve-year-olds are just falling all over themselves. Did Remus have any other friends his age at all?

“Safe travels,” James said, pulling him in for a quick, fierce hug.

“Send us a message when you arrive, yeah?” Dorcas placed a kiss on his forehead. “I’ll be worried if you don’t, which means my fiancée will be worried and we’ll both make poor decisions.”

“I will,” Remus promised.

Sirius forced an encouraging smile onto his face.We were supposed to have more time together!he wanted to scream. “Take care of yourself.”

“I’ll miss you.” His gaze lingered on Sirius’ face and a million words hung between them.Say it. Say it and I’ll follow you anywhere.“I’ll—I’ll miss you.”

“Go. Be with your family,” Sirius said. It was a miracle he didn’t choke on his disappointment. “Don’t forget to write or I’ll have to join in on Marlene and Dorcas’ shenanigans.”

A soft smile flickered across Remus’ face and he ducked his head like he had the day they met. Sirius wanted to see him smile properly someday. With a final brisk nod to the group, he turned and headed off into the forest, one hand on his sword and the other pulling his coat close around his neck. He waited, rooted to the spot, as Remus’ footsteps grew quieter and quieter.

“Are you coming with us?” James murmured.

When Sirius turned, he saw the rest of them already standing at the base of the hill, save for James. He nodded and felt the tingle of pity on the back of his neck, but it was nothing compared to the lump in his throat or the weight in his heart.

Luckily, the innkeeper let them stay without much protest after they told him they saw the assassins leave in pursuit of a different group. They stayed in Hemgard that night and left early in the morning, too exhausted to move on to the next village without a few more hours’ sleep. At midday, Marlene forced them all to take a bath in the icy river that ran along the main road.

“I can’t stand it anymore,” she groaned, unbuttoning her bodice without even asking the others to turn around. “We all smell awful and I’m still a bit bloody from that f*cking knife.”

James, Sirius, and Peter made a quick escape downstream, where a thick copse of trees hid them from view and protected the ladies’ modesty, not that any of them seemed overly bothered. “How are we going to dry off?” James asked as he scrubbed at a charcoal stain on his tunic. “Walking in wet socks seems like a recipe for disaster.”

“As long as I can wash my hair out, I don’t care,” Sirius answered, dunking his head under the water. It was colder than anything he had ever washed in, but the strong current did an excellent job of rinsing the general grime out and he took a moment to revel in the feeling before resurfacing and shaking his head around.

“Stop it, you’re such a dog!” James griped, splashing a handful of water at him. He missed by a mile and caught Peter full in the face, who immediately tackled him. For one so small in stature, he was quite strong.

The solution to their drying problem turned out to be rather easy—once they were done cleaning up, they hung their clothes over some tree branches and stretched out in their underwear in a sunny patch until the water evaporated.

Their moment of peace was interrupted by shouting and laughter from the other side of the trees—from what Sirius gathered, Lily and Marlene had stolen Dorcas’ clothes while she washed and hid them somewhere. Lily eventually gave in and retrieved Dorcas’ things, and within an hour they were on the road again.

“What’s in Bailey, anyway?” James asked, squinting at the trees. “Isn’t it just a tiny lumber town?”

“My family,” Lily said simply. Her brows were furrowed and her mouth had pressed into a thin line; Sirius felt something prickling at the back of his neck.

“Is your family okay?” He was generally the last person to be nosy about families, but he didn’t want to go in blind to a potentially explosive situation.

“As far as I know. They sent me up to Frystmark for a new trade deal a month ago, and I bet word of the attack has already spread. They’re probably worried out of their minds.”

“We’d better get a move on, then,” Peter said with an upbeat smile. “It’d be rude to keep them waiting for too much longer.”

A few minutes later, while Marlene and Peter chatted and James and Dorcas traded obscure archery terminology, Sirius leaned down to Lily’s level and lowered his voice. "You lied.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Back at the tavern. You said your family lived near the border and that’s how you knew the song, but Bailey’s at least two days’ journey from the nearest border, if not more.”

Lily shrugged, tugging the end of her long braid. “I figured Remus could use a little cheering up. You’re not going to tattle on me, are you?”

“It would certainly make James think less of you if I did,” he said mock-seriously.

“Oh,pleasedo it then,” she snorted, casting a quick look over her shoulder. “Does he ever stop?”

“I’ve known him for six years as his professional best friend and I’ve yet to find something he can’t talk about, including you.”

“Six years? I thought you two had been together your whole lives.”

f*ck. He hadn’t meant to let that slip. “Obviously not,” he laughed, trying to brush it off. “We look nothing alike.”

“Well, no, but I figured your families had been friends and that’s why you were their ward. Aren’t you from the Eastern Coast?”

Sirius trained his gaze steadily ahead. “Uh, no, I’m not.”

“Whereareyou from, then?” Lily pressed. When he didn’t respond, she nudged him on the shoulder. “Hey.”

“I was disowned when I was sixteen and no, I’m not going to tell you why.”

Lily's face fell. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. They’re sh*tty people and they were sh*tty parents. I’m better off without them.”A noble and most ancient house, they had told him with an ever-present sneer.Always right, always pure. Regulus had understood that. He had followed the rules and followed the lies and followed the expectations until it killed him, or at least the version of him that Sirius knew. He could still feel the smooth, expensive parchment of their note when he thought about it;he’s taken the mark, it read.We’re so proud.

He didn’t miss the undertone of their letter, the one that said losing him two years prior was nothing short of a blessing. The Blacks had built their empire on the art of insinuation, and they weren't afraid to scorch any weak links out.

“I don’t doubt that,” Lily said, giving him an unreadable look. “You’re a good person.”

“You’ve known me for a week.”

“Yes, and?” Lily raised an eyebrow at him as they took a sharp right turn along an apple orchard. “You comforted James when I allegedly stomped on his heart. You dragged him from a hopeless battle, even though it meant leaving yourself vulnerable. You danced on a table with Marlene just to make us laugh and get us some good food, then let the man you’re infatuated with go back into the wilderness so that he could see his family again on the off chance they're alive at all. I don’t know anything about the people who raised you, but would they do things like that?”

“They’d rather die.” Sirius laughed a little bitterly, tilting his head up toward the wide blue-gray sky for a moment. “You’re a lot wiser than you look, you know.”

“And you’re a lot less pompous than I thought you would be.” Lily craned her neck to look over her shoulder. “All of you are!”

“We’re what?” Marlene asked.

“Not pompous, apparently,” Sirius informed her. “Lovely Lily here thought we’d be a bunch of royal brats.”

“I’m not royal,” Peter grumbled.

“Neither am I, yet here we are.”

“You’re close enough.” Lily shrugged. “Honestly, I thought you’d all be useless as soon as we left Varghal.”

“Wow, thank you for the vote of confidence,” James said sarcastically. “It’s not like we’re trained to fight and lead armies or anything. No, it’s just parties and feasts all year ‘round.”

“Archery’s not just a hobby?” Lily sounded skeptical.

“Uh, no. Unlike your monarchs, the Eastern Coast leaders actually fight alongside their warriors.”

“And the rest of you?” Lily started walking backward so she could face them; Sirius wasn’t sure how to feel about the fact that their navigator was looking the wrong way.

Marlene traced the hilt of her sword and gave it a fond little pat. “I begged my parents to let me learn. Tidoras historically sends generals into wars, not queens, but I've never been one to sit on the sidelines.”

“Marajis is a lot like the Eastern islands,” Dorcas said. “It’s helpful to learn to fight at the same time we learn to ride so the motions become muscle memory together.”

“Interesting,” Lily mused as she turned back around. “Petunia’s going to lose her mind.”

“Who’s Petunia?” Sirius wracked his brain and tried to remember if Lily had mentioned a significant other—that would certainly explain why she rejected James so thoroughly.

“My sister. She’ll probably come for dinner if mum tells her I’m visiting.” Her lips pursed again and Sirius decided not to ask. He could handle a small amount of talking about families, but siblings were absolutely off-limits.

“How far away are we?” Peter asked. “It’s nearly dark.”

“We should be there by tomorrow night,” Lily said, narrowing her eyes at the horizon. “There’s a town a bit further down the road, but we could always camp out in the woods.”

“Let’s find the town,” Marlene said hastily. “I’d rather not freeze to death or get eaten by anything big and toothy.”

They entered the village in groups of two and three, just in case the Silval assassins had warned the innkeepers against six travelers coming together. Marlene and Dorcas took a handful of the leftover coins from Hemgard and rented a small room for the night on the ground floor, where they waited for the others to clamber in through the window.

“We have enough left over for some bread at the next market, I think.” Lily frowned at the meager savings spread on the floor. “Not enough to stay at another inn or buy dinner, though.”

Sirius shrugged. “Marlene and I could—”

“Not tonight, it’s too dangerous,” James interrupted. “We’re only a day’s walk away.”

“Besides, my voice is tired,” Marlene joked. It fell a bit flat, but Sirius appreciated her effort. “If Lily’s estimations are right, we’ve got a long day ahead of us tomorrow, so I vote that we get some sleep. We should have someone on watch in case the assassins come back.”

Peter and James dragged the mattress off the bed and they spread their coats just like they had two nights ago, but there was a cold absence beneath Sirius’ left arm no matter how he laid. With a heavy sigh, he curled against James’ back and prayed for sleep.

A gentle chiming and the sound of voices heralded the dawn. The five of them woke slowly, offering drowsy ‘good morning’s to Dorcas, who had taken the third watch. Lily and Peter went into the market to haggle for food while the others snuck out the window one by one and gathered at the south end of the town square, doing their best not to arouse suspicion from any nosy townsfolk.

“Alright, we’ve got two loaves of bread, four apples, and a bit of cheese,” Lily announced as they set off down the road half an hour later. “It’ll be a lean day.”

“We’ve each had a single bowl of soup over the past three days, Lily. You’re practically a harvest spirit by now,” Sirius said, reaching into the bag and pulling out one of the loaves. It was hard as a rock, but there was no visible mold when he broke it into six vaguely equal pieces.

“A truly lovely harvest spirit,” James added. “Y’know, with the glowing aura and—ow!”

Sirius would treasure the sound of an apple smacking into his best friend’s forehead forever.

They didn’t stop for the rest of the day, partially because they didn’t have money to afford lunch and partially because there was nowhere to go. Open fields stretched to the horizon while lines of ancient oaks, painted red and orange from the autumn, separated homesteads. Farmworkers and woodsmen tipped their hats as they passed; nobody looked at them with untoward suspicion, even as heavily armed as they were.

Dusk had come and gone by the time they reached Bailey. It was smaller than Sirius anticipated, with only a handful of houses and a mill in the distance. The surrounding area was filled with trees of all sizes and rested at the base of a high, wooded hillside, and Lily led them down a path to a quaint cottage as the moon began to rise.

“It’s going to be fine,” Sirius said quietly, squeezing her shoulder in solidarity as she knocked on the simple wooden door.

It creaked open after a moment, revealing a tired-looking woman. “Can I help y—” She faltered when she saw them, and her brown eyes brimmed with tears. “Lily!”

Lily went willingly into her warm embrace. “Mum.”

“I thought something happened to you,” her mother whispered, squeezing her eyes shut as a tear tracked down her cheek. Sirius took a step back to join the others. “When we heard about Varghal…”

“I’m okay, really. We got out just after it was attacked.”

“We?” She seemed to finally notice the decently-sized group waiting at the base of the stoop and flushed the same red as her hair, swiping quickly at her tears. “I’m so sorry, I’ve been terribly rude. Who might you be?”

“Mum, these are my friends.” Lily stepped aside and gestured to each of them in turn. “Marlene, Peter, Dorcas, James, and Sirius.”

Silence fell for a few long heartbeats as Lily’s mother stared at them in shock. “You—you’re—” She turned to Lily and lowered her voice. “Lily, are they the royals?”

“Only some,” Peter said with an awkward wave. “It’s wonderful to meet you, Mrs…?”

“Evans,” she answered weakly. “And you as well. Would you like to come in for cider? It’s terribly cold out tonight. I don’t have anything fancy, I’m afraid.”

Dorcas smiled. “Mrs. Evans, none of us have had a warm drink in several days. Cider sounds fantastic.”

The cider was indeed quite delicious. Mrs. Evans seemed to get over her initial surprise enough to join them around the fireplace with her own mug after a few minutes of hushed whispering with Lily while the rest of them placed their weapons near the door. Carved ivy trailed along the mantle and the tops of the wall planks, making the whole place seem alive in the firelight. It was the type of home Sirius imagined a normal, happy family would have.

“If you don’t mind me asking, where are your parents?” Mrs. Evans asked. “It seems a little odd that a group of your standing would come to this tiny town after an attack such as that.”

“We don’t know,” Marlene said, staring into her cider. “We lost track of them during the battle and Remus got us out before we could find them again.”

“Remus?”

“The prince of Frystmark. He was part of our group until a couple of days ago.” Sirius didn’t miss the sympathetic look Lily shot him across the circle, and his heart ached when he thought of Remus’ face as he said goodbye.

“What happened to him?”

“Nothing, as far as we know. He went back to check on his family and he’s supposed to send a message to us when he gets there safely.”

Mrs. Evans looked skeptical, but she nodded. “I hope the message arrives soon.”

“Me too,” Sirius muttered.

“You should stay here for the night,” she continued. “We have one guest room besides Lily’s, but it will only take a few minutes to put fresh linens on my bed for another two people if you don't mind sharing.”

“Absolutely not,” James said firmly, as if the very idea offended him. “Mrs. Evans, you have shown us incredible hospitality tonight. We certainly don’t have the audacity to rob you of your bed.”

“Marlene and Dorcas could stay with me,” Lily offered. “Unless Tuney’s bed was moved, there should be room.”

“Would you mind?” Dorcas asked, looking honestly concerned. “It’s your personal space.”

Lily shrugged. “You can take hers, I’ll stay in mine, and the boys can have the guest room. Does that work for everyone?”

“Sounds good to me,” Peter said. “Thank you again.”

The guest room was smaller than their rooms at the inns, but still big enough to fit the three of them in one bed if they squeezed in tight. Sirius laid on the far side, teetering on the edge of the bed and desperately wishing James lost that extra inch of height so his elbow would stop finding a home in Sirius’ ribs. He didn’t dream much—vague, blurry images of blackened snow and distant echoes of screaming floated into his subconscious from time to time, and more than once Sirius thought he heard the plaintive howling of a wolf. If he concentrated, he could feel the dense, soft fur on its neck and see the dark gold of its eyes as it stared down at him, watching, waiting.

“Stop yanking on my hair,” James grumbled, slapping at his hand and jostling him awake.

“Huh?” Sirius released his grip on the wolf’s fur, which had suddenly turned pitch-black as it curled around his fingers and caught the sunlight. “Oh. G’mornin'.”

“Five more minutes,” Peter mumbled. Sirius didn’t remember turning around during the night and was honestly surprised that he had managed to move at all, considering how closely packed they were.

“I’m so hungry,” he sighed as his stomach rumbled. “D’you think Lily’s mum will feed us? I’m not really in the mood to play the tambourine.”

“Maybe they’re a family of harvest spirits,” James mused, squinting at the ceiling. Sirius and Peter laid their heads on each of his shoulders and snuggled closer; of the six of them, James was by far the warmest to cuddle. “If you keep doing that, I’ll fall asleep and we’ll stay here forever.”

“Good.” Peter pulled the blanket up to his chin and closed his eyes. “ ‘s been too long since I was in an actual bed.”

“Wakey, wakey boys!” The door slammed open and Marlene entered, clapping her hands loudly in the calm quiet of the guest bedroom.

“No,” Sirius groaned, dragging out the word and pulling James’ arm around his head to block out the light.

“Yes.” Marlene flopped over their tangled legs, nearly snapping both of Sirius' shinbones in the process. “Get up, you lazy gnomes. Oh, this bed iscozy.”

“You’re going to break it if you keep throwing yourself around like that,” James pointed out, grimacing as she shifted. “You have the sharpest knees, I swear.”

“If you don’t get up, you’ll find them in some unsavory places.”

“And I’m up! Let’s roll out, boys.” James extracted himself from their stranglehold and stood, brushing off the flannel pajamas Mrs. Evans had given him. Lily’s father was away on business for the foreseeable future, but Sirius could tell he was a tall man—the trousers were long even on James, and Sirius’ pooled slightly around his feet.

Not that he was bitter about that, or anything.It's just one inch, he reminded himself as they wandered out of the guest room and tugged their undershirts on.It seemed rude to sprawl about half-dressed in someone else’s home; scandalizing Lily’s mother was not on Sirius’ to-do list anytime soon.

“Good morning, everyone,” Lily said from the table, where she was buttering a slice of bread. Her hair was in a fresh braid and still damp from a bath. “How’d you sleep?”

“Like a f—like an absolute dream.” Sirius caught himself just in time and peeked around the door into the kitchen in case Mrs. Evans was within earshot. He saw her working in the garden through the window and relaxed again.Safe. “Thanks again for letting us stay the night.”

“It’s good to be home,” she said with a small smile. “Besides, I figured we’d rest here for a few days anyway and puzzle out what to do from there. Remus’ letter should arrive soon.”

Sirius hummed noncommittally and grabbed his own slice of bread, spreading sweet red jam over it. “I wonder how he’s doing.”

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Marlene yawned, lounging back in her chair so her head laid on Dorcas’ lap.

“Is it really noon already?” James frowned at the wall clock. “We didn’t get here very late last night.”

“We all slept for a long time,” Lily said. “None of us have rested for more than a couple of hours in, like, four days. That reminds me, we should find you some practical clothes. Yours are well-made, but they’re disgusting by this point.”

“Thanks for sparing our feelings,” Dorcas snorted. “Don’t hold back, or anything.”

Lily shrugged. “Mine are, too. Your journeys home are going to be long, and it can’t hurt to have a decent pair of trousers on.”

Home. Sirius hadn’t even thought about getting back to the Eastern Coast. It seemed so long ago that he and James had bundled up in their carriage and headed north, when in reality it had been less than two weeks since their arrival in Varghal. Sirius blew a long breath out and leaned back in his seat, no longer hungry.

“What’s wrong?” James bumped his arm.

“We left home just over two weeks ago. Can you believe that?”

James’ gaze unfocused and he stared into the distance like he always did when he was thinking hard. “…Wow. That’s not a long time.”

“Yeah.”

“It feels like a long time.”

“Yeah.”

“Are you sure it wasn't more?”

“Well, it’s been four-ish days since the attack, and we were there for five days before that, right?” He counted on his fingers just in case. “It took about five and a half, six days to get to Varghal from Harindvar, so yeah. Fifteen.”

“Huh.” James looked around the house as if seeing it for the first time. “And now we’re here. In a woodman’s cottage, running from assassins with nowhere to run to and no idea where our parents are.”

“Think they’ll find us here?”

“I doubt it, but who knows?”

“You two are depressing, but you’re right,” Peter said around a mouthful of apple. “We don’t have a plan or anywhere to go, unless you want to split up and try not to die on the way home.”

“I, for one, would rather not walk halfway across the continent by myself.” Dorcas paused running her fingers through Marlene’s hair for a half-second and Marlene made a grumpy noise. “I’d ask you to come with me, but then you and Pete would be crossing the Wildland alone.”

Marlene sighed as Dorcas resumed her movement. “I love you, but I’ll pass.”

“How about we stick to getting clothes for now?” Lily suggested. “The boys can take turns bathing and I’ll see what I can find for you to wear around here. I’m sure the you and I can alter some old clothes to fit.”

“I’m not doing all of their clothes,” Marlene laughed. “I like sewing, but not that much.”

“Do we have to?” Peter asked with the edge of a whine in his voice. One combined glare from all three women shut him up quick. “Oh, alright. I call dibs on the first bath.”

It was an easy day, much to Sirius’ surprise. Sewing was rather fun once he got the hang of it and stopped stabbing himself in the fingers with every other stitch, and by the late afternoon he had patched a set of trousers and darned the holes in one of Mr. Evans’ old shirts. They were much softer than his mismatched clothes and the fabric was sturdier; he had no doubt these would hold up to plenty of adventuring.

James’ shirt was wonky on one side and Dorcas had to help him rip it apart again, but Peter was deft with a needle and thread. “I apprenticed with the castle apothecary for a few months when I was younger,” he said as he finished hemming the other side of Marlene’s dress. “Sutures aren't much different than sewing fabric, really.”

There was something about accomplishing a menial task with no stakes whatsoever that lifted Sirius’ spirits; surely, Remus’ message would arrive soon and bear good news about their parents. He would tell them that Varghal was still standing, that his people were alive, and that the whole deal with Silvalith was a huge misunderstanding.

He would come back.

Dinner was boisterous that night as the seven of them crowded the table, chatting and laughing over a roast chicken. Mrs. Evans kept spooning more potatoes onto everyone’s plates and beamed at anyone who thanked her for the meal—she seemed genuinely delighted to have them all in her cottage. Lily’s sister had sent word that she would not be visiting after all, and a good bit of the tension Lily had been carrying melted away.

The sky was well and truly dark by ten o’clock that night and they all curled up around the fireplace, sipping their cider and listening to the whispering wind against the shutters. Sirius was warm all over where he leaned against Peter, who dozed off every few minutes with soft snores.I’m content, he thought giddily as his eyes began sliding shut.I’m content and I’m not even at home.

A loud knock at the door startled them all, but their reaction times were sluggish compared to the previous days. It took Marlene a full ten seconds to locate her sword, and Peter only roused when Mrs. Evans peeked out the door with a hesitant, “hello?”

“Hello, you wouldn’t happen to have seen a band of royals around here recently, would you?”

Sirius sat bolt upright as if he had been electrocuted.

“Remus?” Lily hurried over and opened the door the rest of the way. “Come in, please, you look…frozen.”

“Thanks, Lily.” Remus removed his boots and sword, but his mind was clearly not engaged and his voice sounded like he’d been gargling broken glass.Or screaming, Sirius' brain helpfully supplied.

“Remus, are you alright?” Marlene set her sword down slowly, like she was trying not to spook a wounded animal.

“Yes, why? Did I miss something? I’m sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. You must be Lily’s mother.” He held his hand out and Mrs. Evans shook it hesitantly. Sirius didn’t blame her. Remus was streaked with soot and dirt, and he was pretty sure the large stain on his deep blue coat was blood; smudged tear tracks cut along his cheeks. He looked like a dead man walking. “I’m Remus, the prince of Frystmark.”

His voice audibly caught on the last word and Sirius exchanged a glance with James. Something wasverywrong. “Do you have news?” James ventured.

“The Silval soldiers kidnapped our parents. They’re on their way to Os Anguis as we speak.”

“How did you find that out?”

Remus paused for a moment, then stared pointedly at the mantle, away from the rest of them. “There were two soldiers left in the—when I went back.”

“…and?”

“And nothing. They’re not there anymore.”

A cloud of finality hung in the living room, so jarringly different than the bubble of safety they had had only minutes prior. “What did you find there?” Dorcas asked softly.

The stony mask Remus had put up wobbled for a second and he cleared his throat. He looked like he had been running on pure adrenaline for days. “Sorry?”

“When you went back, what did you find?” Dorcas took a step closer, spreading her hands in a gesture of peace. “You’re not telling us something.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Remus—”

“What do you want to know?” he snapped, shoulders tense. They all jumped at the noise and Sirius felt something twist in his chest. Remus was watching them with wild eyes, like he expected them to attack at any moment; his teeth seemed to glimmer in the firelight for a moment. “That they burned every building to the ground? That they left the dead lying in the streets? That they slaughtered our wolves like sheep? Because they did, Dorcas, they came in and took my family and destroyed my city. I have no f*cking idea where my parents are because they were stolen from my home. The snow is red and black and bloody.”

The room went silent. Even the nightbirds outside stopped chirping. “I’m so sorry.”

“You should be.” Remus’ hoarse voice cracked as tears filled his eyes and made them bright. “All of you. This is why we don’t like letting people in. We stay apart from the rest of you because every time we let our guard down, someone comes along and destroyseverythingwe love. It’s ashes. It’s all ashes and there isnothingleft.”

Fresh tears tracked through rusty grime and Sirius saw his lower lip begin to tremble, as well as his hands; in three long strides, Dorcas closed the distance between them to engulf him in a bone-crushing hug.

“Stop,” Remus sobbed, even as he collapsed into her. “Just leave me alone.”

“You don’t have to be alone anymore,” she whispered.

"I called to them." He was hardly audible through tears and her coat as his knees wobbled under him. Lily wiped her nose on her sleeve; Sirius closed his eyes. "I c—I called for them until I couldn't breathe, and nobody answered. Not one. I tried, IswearI tried and I’m so sorry—”

"I know." Dorcas held him close as pain etched itself in every shadow of her face.“But every single one of us is going to stand with you. We’re going to go to Os Anguis and break down the doors and take back what they stole, and we’ll do ittogether.”

Chapter 5: A Long Way From Home

Chapter Text

"What now?”

“f*ck if I know.”

“Right.” Sirius prodded the dying embers of the fire with the poker, staring into the wisps of smoke and waiting for some great cosmic message to reveal itself. Some reason for the events of the past weeks, some sheepish apology from the dice-rolling asshole in the sky who decided to throw everything Sirius cared about in a basket and set it aflame.

The soft splashing from the other room had stopped a while ago, but the rest of them had silently agreed not to talk about it. Nobody really knew what to do, anyway—Sirius ached to sit with Remus in silence for as long as he needed, just so he wouldn’t be alone, but he knew that giving him space would be the best course of action.

“The water’s probably cold by now,” Peter said quietly, chancing a look at the closed door. “D’you think he’ll be alright?”

“Not particularly,” James said, his voice dry. “Having your home torn to bits will do that to a person, I suppose.”

“James,” Lily bit out, a tad harsher than strictly necessary.

He deflated. “Sorry. I’m just worried.”

Sirius knew that look on his best friend’s face; he had seen it many times before when James was worried about his parents or when Sirius started thinking about his old life again. The furrow of his brow, the downturn of his mouth, and the rigid line of shoulders were a familiar sight to anyone who knew him and proved that Remus had already become part of James’ family. Just over a week this time, Sirius thought wryly. That must be a new record.

“Do you have extra space for the night?” a quiet voice asked from the doorway to the washroom. Remus was still drying his hair; the smooth caramel color had turned chestnut brown from the water and curled at the ends in loose loops, giving him the appearance of a slightly ruffled bird. “I can sleep on the floor if you don’t.”

“Nonsense, we’ve got space in our bed,” James said without hesitation. Sirius and Peter both raised an eyebrow at him—they most certainly did not have extra space in the guest bed that was barely made for two people, let alone four strapping young men. “Right, boys?”

“Worst comes to worst, you can share with me,” Lily joked halfheartedly. The flicker of a smile passed across Remus’ face and hope rose in Sirius’ chest. His eyes were still dull and distracted, but there was a bloom of life there somewhere.

Remus padded across the room and settled between Sirius and the fire without a sound. His left knee rested carefully against Sirius’ right; Sirius could tell he was keenly aware of every movement either of them made. “Did the rest of you form a plan yet?”

“We didn’t want to do it without you,” Dorcas answered with a tired smile. “Besides, it’s far too late to do anything important and I, for one, have reached my limit for heavy conversations tonight.”

The rest of them murmured their agreement, but nobody moved toward the bedrooms. Sirius stood and brushed the nonexistent dust from his trousers. “I’m going to bed. Anyone else?”

A chorus of ‘yeah, sure’ and vague nods answered, followed by a good bit of shuffling and muttering as five people dispersed, leaving just him and Remus by the fire. Carefully, Sirius reached out and touched him on the arm.

“Are you coming?”

“Yeah.”

“…do you need a moment?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright.” Sirius didn’t move from his position and, after a brief period of silence, crouched down and wrapped a tentative arm around Remus' shoulders; his torso bent like an old tree in the wind, and a shaky sigh left his lips. “You’re going to be okay, Remus.”

“I don’t know how I can be. If you had seen it—everything is gone. Everything.”

“No.” Remus glanced up at him, finally, and Sirius gave him a light squeeze. “We’re still here. James, Lily, Peter, Marlene, Dorcas. Me.”

“I killed two people.” His voice was little more than a whisper and the bags under his eyes seemed to darken. Firelight danced in each pool of amber as Remus looked away and shook his head. “I heard them talking about what they did and I went straight for their throats.”

“Marlene stabbed a man in the heart three days ago. James took out at least two at the battle. I don’t think any of us are going to get through this with clean hands.”

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep.”

“There’s only one way to find out,” Sirius said, offering a hand. Remus took it after a second’s hesitation and he pulled him to his feet until they were facing each another in a cruel mirror of their dance. In that moment, standing mere inches from Remus in the low light of the fire, Sirius wanted to hold him close and stand between anything that dared to make him look so fragile.

He settled for taking his elbow and leading him to the guest room, where James and Peter were doing an excellent job of faking sleep. They changed in silence away from one another, though it didn’t really matter; once they slid beneath the sheets and sandwiched themselves alongside the other two, Sirius could feel James’ heartbeat through his arm on one side and Remus’ on the other.

With a long exhale, he let the comfortable heat radiating off Remus’ body and the steady breaths of his brother lull him to sleep.

The morning dawned soft and slow for once. Sirius decided not to open his eyes and greet it in case Marlene was waiting to drag him out of that wonderful bed by his toes again.

“Should we wake them?” a low voice asked from the doorway.

“No, they look so cozy!”

“We do have to leave at some point, Marlene.”

“Maybe we can just get Sirius up and let Remus be? He’s had a rough couple of days.”

There was a slightly-too-loud laugh that was quickly shushed by several people. “I’d like to see you try to get Sirius out of there.”

Out of where? Sirius let the last bits of glorious sleep slide away and wiggled his toes, trying to get his bearings. He was still in the guest bed, laying partially on his side—that’s odd, I never sleep on my side if I can help it—with a warm weight covering half his body. Large blanket, his tired brain suggested. Sirius hummed in agreement and cuddled into it.

The blanket mumbled something and shifted. Not blanket???

Carefully, he cracked one eye open and scowled in the general direction of the voices from before. “Shaddup.”

“Oh, he’s adorable.”

The not-blanket grumbled again, slightly louder, and tightened its grip. From what Sirius gathered in the sudden light of the sun, he had rolled directly into Remus at some point during the night, whose limbs were wrapped around him in a tangle. Soft curls tickled the underside of his chin and one strong arm had a solid hold on his midriff.

“What?” he mumbled under his breath, looking past Remus to the doorway, where five people were gathered. “G’morning.”

“Morning.” Dorcas grinned at him. “How’d you sleep?”

“…I’m not sure I can move.” He shifted, then immediately froze when Remus made a terribly sad noise and flopped onto his chest. James was shaking with suppressed laughter and Sirius scowled at him before tugging gently on Remus’ shoulder. “Hey. Remus, wake up.”

“Hmm?” Remus inhaled slowly as he woke. His freckles glowed in the slanted sun.

“Good morning.”

Remus jolted in his arms and sat up in the blink of an eye, which would have been fine if his head wasn’t directly beneath Sirius’ chin and they weren’t on the very edge of the bed. “sh*t, sorry!”

“Ow.” Sirius’ jaw smarted as he pushed the upper half of his body back onto the mattress, blinking spots of pain out of his vision.

“Are you alright?” Peter asked. Remus’ eyes went wide when he saw their audience.

“Were you all just standing there?”

“Yeah.”

“For how long?”

“Long enough,” James snickered, sending the others into a fit of laughter. Sirius could feel the heat of embarrassment burning him from the inside out and squeezed his eyes shut, praying this was just a dream. “Come on, you two, we have planning to do!”

“I am so sorry,” Remus said into his hands once the others had vanished back down the hall. Their voices floated in from the other room; Sirius flopped back on the bed and scrubbed a hand down his face.

“It’s fine,” Sirius assured him, agonized. His heartbeat stuttered. “It was, um, kind of nice.”

“Oh.” Remus looked down at last, still sleep-soft and gorgeous. “Should we…?”

Sirius’ pulse skipped a beat as they made eye contact. Remus really was beautiful in the dawn light, all warm colors and sharp angles smoothed by sleep. He propped himself up on his elbows and felt his stomach tense as the gap between them began to close. “Yeah,” he heard himself say. “Yeah, we should.”

“Right. Okay.” Remus stared at him for a moment, stock-still, until Sirius leaned closer and he all but bolted from the bed. “We have—we have a lot to do today and you might want to, um, get your stuff together.”

Sirius’ jaw fell open as Remus grabbed something off the floor and slipped out of the room without a backward glance, nearly tripping over his own feet as he tried to walk and put socks on at the same time. “That was—but—”

If he had a little less self-control he would scream.

Instead, like a responsible adult who wasn’t still reeling with confusion, he buried his groan in a pillow, rolled out of bed, and yanked his clothes on with a few bitten-back curses. It took a few deep breaths to collect himself and then a few more to calm his heart, which was still galloping from being thoroughly snuggled.

When he finally gathered the courage to face the world, everyone else pointedly avoided meeting his eyes. Did they not understand that he could see the smiles they were hiding? Did they not—“Stop it, Marlene!”

“I’m not doing anything!” she immediately defended with a twitching smirk.

“I know! That’s the problem!”

“What do you want me to do?”

“You might say ‘good morning’!”

She snorted and he instantly regretted his word choice. “But I know you already had one.”

“Oh, for f*ck’s sake!”

“Alright, both of you, that’s enough,” Lily interrupted, holding her hands out like she was stopping a cage match. “Marlene, while you are entirely correct and I’m on your side, we do have things to take care of. Sirius, we saved you a spot.” With far too much ceremony, she gestured to the sliver of room between herself and Remus and dissolved into laughter.

“Lily, you are so funny,” Remus said, deadpan. “Really, I’m grateful you’re here. Don’t know what we’d do without you.”

“Is everything alright in here?” Mrs. Evans poked her head from the kitchen, looking rather amused.

“Mrs. Evans, how attached are you to your daughter?” Sirius asked.

“She’s always been a troublemaker,” she sighed. “But unfortunately, I do care about her quite a bit.”

“Thanks, mum!” Lily said with a bright smile. “Love you!”

“I love you too, imp,” Mrs. Evans disappeared back into the kitchen with a wink.

“Believe it or not, we actually did call you two out here for a reason.” Peter spread a map over the coffee table and placed a mug of cider at each corner. “Alright, so we know the kidnappers are going to Os Anguis, and Bailey is…here-ish?”

Lily moved his finger a bit down and to the right. “Here, actually. We hauled ass to get here in two days. Honestly, I’m a little surprised Remus made it so fast.”

“I ran most of the way.” Remus shrugged one shoulder. His hair still stuck up on one side from the pillows; it took every ounce of willpower for Sirius not to reach over and comb his fingers through it. “The soldiers will be wanting to avoid suspicion, so they’ll take the most direct route to the capital.”

“There’s no way we’ll be able to cut them off before they reach Silvalith,” Marlene said, winding a strand of hair between her fingers. “A caravan would travel slow, but we would still be lucky to catch them before the mountains.”

“Time out.” Dorcas held her hands up in a T-shape. “Do we have a plan for what we do if we catch up to the caravan? Are we killing a bunch of soldiers? Are we re-kidnapping our parents? Are we following them into Os Anguis and exposing Riddle’s assassination attempts?”

An uncomfortable silence followed. Honestly, Sirius hadn’t thought about their end goal yet; tracking down the royals had been at the top of his priority list until Remus came back with information. “I might have an idea?” Lily scooted over to the map and furrowed her brows. “Right, so, if we can catch the caravan before it crosses the mountain pass and threaten the soldiers into giving your folks back, we can tell them what we know and let the actual leaders of our countries handle the royal madman.”

“You’re so smart,” James practically sighed.

“What if we’re really unlucky, though?” Remus asked, ignoring him. “If the caravan makes it through the mountain pass, we’re f*cked. We already have to walk through the heart of Silvalith without getting noticed, but going into Os Anguis fully armed with a target on our backs is just plain stupid.”

“Worst case scenario, we could always kill Riddle and stop a war before it starts,” Marlene mused.

“Full offense, that’s the worst idea I’ve ever heard.”

“I said ‘worst case scenario’! Do you have a better ‘worst case’ plan?”

“Yes! It’s called ‘let’s not get publicly executed for high treason’!”

“I don’t think it counts as high treason if you’re not a citizen of Silvalith,” Sirius pointed out, earning himself twin glares.

“Come on, we’re seven of the best and brightest minds on the continent!” James protested. “We have a Plan A that works as long as we move fast, avoid attention, and make it through eastern Silvalith without a problem. Plan B doesn’t have to be complicated if we improvise.”

Lily turned to him in stark disbelief. “Improvisation isn’t a plan.”

“I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but we attract trouble like magnets,” Peter added. “Did you forget that a solid number of Silval soldiers are actively trying to kill us?”

“Assassins, not soldiers.” James corrected, then frowned. “Okay, I see your point now.”

“At this point, I say we decide what to do with your parents once we find them and then figure out what the backup is,” Lily said as she pinched the bridge of their nose.

“All in favor of killing their captors?” Dorcas asked. Nobody so much as twitched. “How about a quiet re-kidnapping?” Seven hands went into the air. “That settles it, then. The caravan will have made it to the northern border by now, so we’ll have to leave soon if we want to catch them before they reach the mountains.”

“They’ve got a five-day head start,” Sirius warned as he mentally traced their route along the map. If they did it right, they would pass through an area he knew fairly well. “We should leave by this afternoon at the very latest.”

“Lily, you’re going with them?” Mrs. Evans voice made them all jump a bit—Sirius had entirely forgotten that she was still within earshot. The earlier playfulness on her face had been replaced by concern and a touch of sadness.

Lily co*cked her head to the side. “Yeah, mum, I am.”

“But why?”

Lily started to respond, then paused and looked down at the map. As much as Sirius hated to think about it, he understood; she had no stake in this dangerous, possibly fatal quest. Her family was safe, her country was still standing, and she had absolutely nothing to prove to anyone. She could stay and be a woodsman in Bailey, she could forget about them all, she could let them go with an oath of secrecy, and nobody would be able to fault her for it. Sirius knew she was brave, but she was also one of the smartest people he knew; nobody in their right mind would agree to go on a cross-continental road trip for no reason.

“I—I don’t know.” Across the circle, James’ shoulders sank. I suppose we’re down to six, then. “I think…” she began again, trailing off before shaking her head. “I know I’ll regret it for the rest of my life if I don’t go. This is what friends do for each other.”

“Alright. Not that you need my permission anymore, but I won’t stop you,” Mrs. Evans said, suddenly sounding much older than she looked. “Come on into the kitchen and fix yourselves some sandwiches for the road. Nobody will leave my house hungry if I have anything to say about it.”

Sirius’ estimation of ‘some sandwiches’ turned out to be vastly inadequate. Eventually, Lily had to stop her mother from filling one of their borrowed rucksacks with bread and meat instead of other necessities, like spare socks and their map. But many hands made light work, and within two hours it was time to go.

“Can I have a second, guys?” Lily asked as they gathered on the edge of the road.

“Take all the time you need,” Peter said, hoisting Lily’s pack onto his shoulder.

Mrs. Evans was still watching them from the front door, but her stoic expression shifted as Lily hurried back up the stone path for a final hug. “I’m so proud of you,” Sirius heard her say as she held her daughter tight. “Come home as soon as you can.” Her eyes shone as Lily mumbled something into the thick coil of her hair. “I’ll miss you, too, Lily-love.”

Marlene let out a trembling breath next to Sirius and he pulled her in for a loose side-hug; he suddenly and fiercely wished she had had a chance to say goodbye to her mothers before they were taken. Whatever it takes, he promised himself. Whatever it takes to get them home.

Lily rejoined the group a few moments later, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as she walked straight to the front of the pack without a backward glance. Time to go.

“Who here has been to Silvalith before?” Sirius asked. “Outside of the council meetings, I mean.” Marlene, Remus, and Lily all raised their hands. “Pete, don’t you live on the border?”

“I did when I was little. Once the border disputes started getting violent, my mum and I moved closer to Courlion, just in case. There was no reason to go after that.”

“Right, physician’s apprentice. Did you learn anything besides embroidery there?”

Peter rolled his eyes. “It’s not embroidery, it’s sewing. And yes, I did. Just for that, I’m not stitching any of your limbs back together if you do something stupid.”

“Fine, I’ll get someone else to do it for me. One of you knows how to reattach arms and such, right?” Sirius’ inquiry was met with uncomfortable silence. “Really? Not a single one of you?”

“It never came up,” Dorcas defended.

“Lily, you might want to take back your earlier statement about us being useless.”

“Pompous, not useless, but alright.” Lily grinned. “I hereby declare everyone in this group except myself and Peter an official useless brat. Happy now?”

“You’re doing wonders for my self-esteem here,” James snorted.

“I’m sure you can stand to be taken down a peg.”

They bickered back and forth for another hour or so, trailing after Lily in a strange parade. Swapping out their tattered and grimy clothing seemed to have been a good choice; they hardly got a second glance from the many farmers along the way.

The roads of the Middle Kingdom had always impressed Sirius. Due to the heavy logging trade and the fact that most people had to cross it in order to get to the Eastern ports, the dirt and sawdust were thoroughly packed and sturdy. There was no leftover muck from rain and horses, and in some places, in had been paved with wide bricks where the ground was weakest.

“How long until we reach the village?” James pulled a face as he adjusted one of the heavy rucksacks and his back popped. “Or even just a bench?”

“Marlene has the map, ask her,” Lily said.

“What? No, I don’t. Remus has it.”

“You have it!” Remus argued. “You said you’d put it away while I was packing the food!”

“I said Lily would put it away,” Marlene corrected. “And then she said she gave it to you.”

Lily looked between them and the group came to a stop. “Marlene, I asked you to get it off the table while Remus packed the sandwiches!”

“I told you I was packing the food!”

“It’s not my fault! Lily said she’d take care of it!”

“Stop it, all of you!” James cut in, stepping between them. “Let’s go through our stuff and check to see who has the map. It doesn’t matter whose fault it was.”

“It wasn’t mine,” Remus muttered under his breath.

Marlene rolled her eyes. “Oh, for the love of—” Her complaint cut off abruptly as a bundle of fabric hit her square in the nose. James lifted another pair of socks in a clear threat until she huffed and began helping him dig through their things.

Twenty minutes and plenty of cursing later, they discovered that nobody had, in fact, grabbed the map before they left the house. A second challenge came when none of them could figure out how to repack their bags, so the hurried scramble turned into lunch in the middle of the road. Ham and cheese sandwiches were decidedly less tasty when they were sun-warmed and dusty from travel, but Sirius was hungry enough to eat just about anything.

“Well. We have no map and we really can’t waste any more time if we want half a chance of catching that stupid f*cking caravan,” Sirius said as he jammed the last waterskin back in. “At least you three have been here before.” There was a tense silence. No. Absolutely not. “Are you kidding me?”

“In my defense, I’m fantastic at navigating southern Silvalith,” Marlene said. She seemed less likely to chop someone’s head off after some food, at least.

“Remus?”

“Same problem, opposite direction.”

“Lily, please tell me you know where you’re going.”

“I know how to get to the border, mostly,” she said, twisting the end of her braid. “The trade deals have been tapering off the past few years because we keep finding Silval soldiers poking around the towns, but my dad and I used to go there at least once a season.”

Dorcas pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes. “And none of you thought to bring that up when Sirius asked? You know, when we were still a reasonable distance from the cottage?”

“He didn’t specify!” Lily and Marlene exclaimed at the same time.

Sirius wanted to throttle them both. “I shouldn’t have to! My meaning was crystal clear!”

“He was pretty blatant about it,” James mused.

“You don’t get to defend him.” Marlene jabbed her pointer fingers at them. “You’ve got that weird telepathy thing going on and I don’t like it.”

“Look, why don’t we just keep walking until we reach the next town and find a map there,” Peter said, sounding utterly exhausted despite their recent meal. Sirius supposed spending time around the six of them would do that to a person, especially one as introverted as poor Peter.

“I’m with Pete,” Dorcas said, standing up and adjusting the spear on her back. “We’re not getting anything done by sitting around and arguing.”

“The future rulers of the continent, and not a single person remembers a f*cking map,” James mumbled as he hauled Sirius to his feet. “Fantastic.”

“We’re lost.”

“No, we're not.”

“We’re definitely lost.”

“For the eightieth time, I know where we are!”

“Bullsh*t. We should’ve gone left.”

“For f*ck’s sake, Sirius, give it a rest!”

“I’m with Sirius on this one—”

“Whoever would have guessed.”

“—and we should turn back before it gets any darker.” An owl hooted overhead and all seven of them jumped, forming an even tighter clump as they watched the sun grow lower and lower on the horizon.

Remus shook his head. “Turning back won’t do us any good. In case you haven’t noticed, there aren’t a lot of people around here.”

“I swear I saw a chimney not ten minutes ago.”

“Jamie, I love you, but you have terrible eyesight for anything within twenty feet of you. That was a dead tree.” Sirius leaned closer to him as something shifted in the underbrush, hovering his hand over the hilt of his sword. They had seen neither hide nor hair of the assassins since Hemgard, but that didn’t mean they were safe.

Another twig crackled. “Hello?” James called, slowly drawing an arrow from his quiver. “Is anyone there?”

“If you’re here to rob us, we have no money, just sandwiches and socks,” Marlene said. “You don’t like ham and cheese, do you? Ouch, Dorcas, that was my foot!”

“Lower your voice!” Dorcas hissed. The point of her arrow gleamed in the setting sun as she took up a position defending Marlene's back.

“I’m just asking!”

“Whoever’s out there, show yourself,” Remus demanded in a voice like stone. Unfortunately, it was kind of attractive, especially since it was still a little husky from the night before and—pull it together, Sirius. Now is not the time. Sirius shook his shoulders out and resumed scanning the shadowed trees around them. He had been trained to fight since he was a child—six years of a life of comfort wasn’t enough to take that away.

A sudden scream pierced the air behind him, closely followed by James’ familiar shout of alarm and the twang of a bowstring. Sirius whipped around, only for Peter’s wayward elbow to put him off-balance. He stumbled into Remus’ back and within moments, all seven of them were in a pile on the ground, staring up at a scornful-looking cat.

One of James’ arrows was embedded in the ground next to its curling tail and it appeared personally offended by that fact, if its hiss of disapproval was anything to go by. Sirius had never been glared at by a cat before; the spectacle markings around its eyes made the effect even more pronounced.

“Is this what all the fuss was about?” Marlene asked. “You scared the sh*t out of me, you two!”

“It jumped at me out of nowhere,” Lily said sheepishly. The cat meowed loudly at her. “You did!”

Sirius untangled himself from the web of limbs, rucksacks, and weapons—it was a miracle none of them had lost an eye, with all the sharp pointy bits laying about. “If anyone was wondering, my heart is doing fine now, though it’s found a new home in my throat for the time being.”

“I don’t like cats,” Remus grumbled as he dusted himself off. “Always running around and biting people.”

“I’m pretty sure direwolves bite people, too,” Sirius said.

“But not without a reason.” Remus sounded downright scandalized. Right. Sacred symbol.

“Where are your people, kitty?” Dorcas asked, crouching down to the cat’s height and holding her hand out for it to sniff. “Aren’t you just the cutest thing?”

The cat rubbed its head against her palm, then moved past her and began weaving through everyone’s legs in a smooth ripple, pausing now and then to pass judgement. Sirius held his breath when it reached Remus, who had been eyeing it warily the whole time. The cat sat down in front of him and tangled its claws in his pant leg, tugging downward with a forceful meow.

“Stop it. Bad cat.” Remus shook his ankle around, but the paw didn’t budge.

Another meow. Another pull.

“If you rip my trousers, we’re going to have an issue.”

“Brrr.”

“Brrrr yourself.” Sirius stifled his laughter and leaned his head on James’ shoulder, which trembled with silent snickering. “Ugh, fine.”

Remus knelt on the ground and the cat removed its paw. If Sirius didn’t know better, he would have thought it raised an eyebrow. Slowly, deliberately, without breaking eye contact, the mysterious cat shuffled forward, leaned in, and rubbed both its cheeks against Remus’ with a low purr.

“Made a friend, have you?” Sirius said as the cat stepped back and began sauntering toward the trees to their right.

“I think she wants to show us something.”

“Excuse me?”

Instead of elaborating on his incredibly cryptic and unhelpful comment, Remus stood up and began following the cat. “Remus,” Lily called. “Remus, I know you’re not big on teamwork but would you care to tell us why the hell we should follow a random cat into the very dark, very creepy woods?”

“Just trust me.”

“Wow, that’s the opposite of an answer,” James muttered.

Remus paused at the edge of the trees and gestured in exasperation. “Well, I’m not just going to leave you all here, but we’re going to lose her if you keep on standing around. Do you trust me or not?”

“Are you feeling alright?” Peter asked carefully. “It’s been a hard few days—"

“I’m not going crazy,” Remus huffed. “And for what it’s worth, I trust you. All of you. Can we please just follow the cat now?”

“Alright.” Sirius stepped forward and met Remus’ gaze. "Lead the way."

A flicker of surprise crossed his face, followed by a slight smile that sent Sirius’ insides tumbling over each other until he was sure everything was upside down and backwards. “Thanks.”

“Onward, cat whisperer,” Dorcas said as she peered through the trees. “Huh, would you look at that. She’s waiting for us.”

Sure enough, the cat was perched on a pile of tree roots, grooming one of her paws with the air of someone who simply could not be bothered by their petty arguments. “Doesn’t get much clearer than that,” James admitted.

The last of the sunlight was gone a mere five minutes into their journey, leaving them all stumbling along in the slivers of moonlight that filtered through the branches overhead. Marlene and Dorcas had the right idea in Sirius’ opinion—their tightly-clasped hands prevented any sudden stumbles that could take the whole group down yet again.

“Where are you taking us?” Sirius murmured as he missed another low-hanging branch by the thinnest of margins.

The cat trotted gracefully down a winding slope and disappeared around the curve. “Be careful here,” Remus warned, bracing one arm against a nearby tree as he started to step down. “It doesn’t look all that—" With a loud scraping noise, the rock he was stepping onto gave way and skidded into the darkness. Sirius lunged forward without a second thought and grabbed his wrist, hauling him back with all his weight as the rock bounced down a deep ravine that had been rendered invisible by the shadows; it echoed down, down, down in time with Remus’ pounding heart beneath his hand.

“—steady,” Remus finished.

He pushed against the tree just as Sirius pulled on his arm, and they ended up bumping chests as he straightened. “You okay?” Sirius’ voice was weak even in his own ears.

“Yeah. Thanks.” Remus sounded even more breathless; it would have been flattering if Sirius could focus on anything other than the way the moon caught the side of his face.

“So, the cat ditched us,” James said dryly. Sirius carefully let go, but Remus reached down and folded his palm around his fingers. Every thought whited out. What was that saying Euphemia was so fond of? Cold hands, warm heart?

“On the contrary, dear boy, I believe she brought you exactly where you needed to be.” A silver-blue light bobbed along the ravine path like a star come down to Earth and the trance was broken. Sirius jerked back, but he felt Remus’ gaze burning into his neck like a brand.

“Who are you?” Lily asked suspiciously.

“My name is Albus Dumbledore.” As the light came closer, Sirius could make out the face of an elderly man with a long, white beard walking toward them. “Minerva has a knack for finding lost souls wandering about in the woods, though I do hope she wasn’t too pushy with you.”

“Where is that light coming from?” Marlene squinted as Albus Dumbledore reached the top of the hill. He chuckled and thumped his tall walking stick twice on the ground—the light dimmed, spreading into a softer glow that illuminated everyone’s faces.

Dumbledore looked even older up close, yet there was a youthful twinkle in his eye that was equal parts inviting and unsettling, like he knew several things they did not and intended not to share. “Magic, of course.”

“Magic?” Peter’s skepticism was palpable. “...alright.”

“Would you like to come back to my cottage for the night? It gets quite cold around here this time of year.”

“We really appreciate the offer, Mr...Dumbledore, but I think it would be best if we kept going. We have a long way to travel and not much time,” Dorcas said. In the gentle light, Sirius could see her hand twitching for the bow slung over her shoulder.

“Ah, yes, your quest to save your parents.” Dumbledore nodded sagely, as if this was old news. “An honorable thing, to be sure, but ultimately unsuccessful. If you insist on going, it will be difficult to pursue without a map.”

Frost covered Sirius’ spine and he saw James stiffen in his periphery. How did he know about the map? “How do you know about our parents?” Marlene’s voice was low and dangerous in a way that Sirius only heard on the rarest of occasions.

“I know a great many things, Marlene of Tidoras, but I have very few people to share them with. If you are truly committed to your quest, I can help you on your way. If you choose not to accept my aid, I will send you along with my best wishes and a promise of safe passage through the woods.”

“Team meeting, everyone,” James said without looking away from the wizard.

“He creeps me out, but I don’t get any really bad feelings,” Lily said quietly when they huddled up. Sirius glanced back at Dumbledore, who seemed to be deep in discussion with Minerva the cat. “I think he’s just a little off his rocker.”

“He knew about the map, and about our parents.” Dorcas narrowed her eyes. “Something’s not quite normal.”

“I think we should go with him for the night and hear what he has to say,” Sirius said. “Worst case scenario, we leave with a crazy old man’s ramblings and a couple hours of rest.”

“I think the worst case scenario is getting murdered in our sleep, actually.” Peter frowned. “He doesn't seem like the type, though.”

“Any information he can give us is good information,” James sighed, running his hand through his hair. “I vote we go with him.”

“Me, too,” Dorcas said, rather grudgingly. “He’s bizarre, but he hasn’t tried to kill us yet.”

Marlene wrapped her arm around her fiancée’s waist. “I’m with Dorcas.”

James nudged his shoulder. “Sirius?”

“You know I’m on your side.”

“Remus?”

“We’ve got nothing to lose.”

“Pete? Lily?”

“I’m up for trying,” Lily said as Peter nodded.

“Mr. Dumbledore?” James turned around. “We would be honored to spend the night at your cottage.”

“Lovely!” Dumbledore straightened quite smoothly for a man of his apparent age. “Follow me, please, and do be careful of the edge.”

The woods were damn near silent compared to the ones surrounding Varghal. Sirius flexed his jaw as they went deeper into the shadows, their way lit only by Dumbledore’s magical light—there was a faint buzzing in his ears that simply would not go away. By the time they reached Dumbledore’s cottage, he couldn’t tell if minutes or hours had passed. The shadows all ran together in his vision, broken up by strange pinpricks of multicolored lights that looked too much like animal eyes for his liking.

Minerva was waiting in the open doorway when they arrived, silhouetted by a cheerful orange glow from the fireplace. The tension that had melted off Remus during their walk returned with a vengeance, and he balked as they approached. “Are you okay?” Sirius asked as his pupils dilated.

“It smells like smoke,” Remus muttered.

It’s ashes. It’s all ashes and there is nothing left. “Do you want to wait outside? We don’t have to go in.”

Remus shook his head, then paused as a plume of pale smoke curled into the night air and sent a shiver through him. “I don’t know.”

“My apologies, Remus, I had forgotten.” Dumbledore snapped his fingers and the scent of smoldering logs completely disappeared, leaving only the crisp sweetness of the forest. “I can assure you it is much warmer indoors, if you should choose to come in.”

The welcoming glow of the cottage remained, but the chimney looked as though it had never been used; not a single smudge of coal lingered. As soon as they crossed the threshold, James gripped Sirius’ elbow and all thoughts of burning cities fled his mind. “Do you smell—”

“Yeah.”

The cloud of sandalwood and jasmine hit him like a punch to the heart. All Sirius could feel was the warmth of Euphemia’s arms around him and Fleamont’s steady hand on his shoulder, shielding him from the monsters that chased him across the world. He could practically hear the chime of her bangles, could feel the softness of the old shirts that Sirius borrowed until he received clothing of his own. James was there, too, in the sea salt and coconut; somewhere, deep beneath, he heard the childlike laughter of someone he had not seen in a long, long time against the smell of star-shaped sugar cookies fresh from the oven.

“What is this?” Dorcas asked, her voice thick with emotion. “What are you doing?”

“Ah.” Dumbledore’s gaze was full of pity as he looked at them over his half-moon glasses. “That, I am afraid, is not my doing. This cottage was built from the wood of the storgus tree, which is quite comforting to most, though I suppose it would be bittersweet for you. Please, have a seat.”

James cleared his throat, opened his mouth, then and then took another deep breath before trying to speak. Euphemia and Fleamont were the closest thing Sirius had to actual parents, but he had only known them for six years; he couldn’t imagine what this was like for James. “You said you had information for us?”

“I do. To be frank, your quest will not succeed.”

Marlene clung to the armrests of her chair. “It has to. We will get our parents back and stop this war.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that,” Dumbledore chuckled. “You have a strong family here, and I have the feeling you will not let each other down. No, what I mean is that your current plan is doomed to fail in more ways than one.”

Peter exhaled slowly. “So how do we fix it?”

“I’m glad you asked, Mr. Pettigrew. The first problem is that the caravan will almost certainly cross into Silvalith by tomorrow afternoon. The second is that you are being hunted by Death Eater assassins as we speak, and if Minerva had not brought you here you would have been caught before dawn.” He took a sip of his tea. “The third issue has to do with your plans for Tom Riddle.”

“King Riddle?” Lily frowned. “We were going to turn him over to the authorities and expose his corruption.”

“Yes, you were. Please do not take offense to this, but it was quite foolish to believe a man as powerful as Tom Riddle would go quietly out of power. In order to achieve true peace, he must die.”

Dumbledore’s words hung heavy in the room, nearly overpowering the scent of home and family. “We have to kill him?” Sirius asked.

“In one way or another.” The old man looked truly dismayed by this for reasons beyond Sirius’ grasp. “Therein lies your final challenge, of course: how to do it?”

“Dorcas and I are both archers,” James offered, though he looked rather sickened by the idea. “If we catch him in front of a window, we might have a chance.”

“I admire your nerve, but it is not so simple as that. Tom Riddle comes from a land of magic, the same land I used to call home before it was destroyed by war. He can only be killed with a weapon from the place of his birth, and the world can only heal if his evil is obliterated.” Dumbledore took another long sip of tea as Minerva curled up on the nightstand next to Dorcas’ elbow.

“Destroyed?” Remus said softly. “He’s not from…?”

“He is not from your homeland, no,” Dumbledore assured. “Tom Riddle and I both hail from what is now called the Wildland.”

“But nobody lives there,” Dorcas protested. “It’s just cracked earth and monsters as far as the eye can see.”

A great wave of sadness washed over his wrinkled face. “Seventy years ago, Tom Riddle attempted to destroy his only physical weakness and become immortal, but his plan backfired and the Wildland became what it is today. What once pulsed with life and magic was drained to a parched wasteland. However, his weakness still resides in the compass rose for those who are pure of heart and courageous enough to seek it.”

“Then we’ll start in the morning,” Sirius said. “With seven people searching, we’ll find it for sure.”

Dumbledore held up one hand. “That is very courageous of you, but it will not solve your problems. By the time you travel south, find the dagger, return, and make your way to Os Anguis without discovery, it will be too late to stop the war, not to mention you will lose the trail of your parents.”

“What are you saying?”

“He’s saying we have to split up,” Lily said. “One group has to go to the Wildland while the other tracks our parents down. We would meet in Os Anguis.”

“Absolutely not.” James’ voice brooked no room for argument. “We work as a team. Nobody will get separated ever again.”

The memory of Remus arriving the night before covered in blood, soot, and fear rose unbidden to Sirius’ mind. He couldn’t bear seeing that again with anyone else. “Let’s discuss it in the morning after we’ve had some sleep, okay?” Peter offered. Sirius could hear his decision in his voice; he was already grieving. The rest of them muttered their assent, and Sirius prepared himself for a long night.

Waking up in a magic forest was strange. It was quiet except for the gentle buzzing, and the smell of Sirius’ family clung to his throat with every breath. He had slept like a log and didn’t dream once, but the bitter resignation of what was to come laid like bricks on his chest when he opened his eyes.

He was the first one up, for once, and took a moment to drink in the sight of his friends as they laid at peace. Marlene and Dorcas were facing one another, their foreheads and knees touching so the curve of their backs formed an unconscious heart. Peter was curled in a ball near the heavy curtain of Lily’s vibrant hair; her freckled face was smooth in sleep, making her look more like the girl Sirius had played board games with a mere week prior. James was splayed beneath the blankets, snoring softly—Sirius would never tire of seeing him free of the bonds of responsibility.

And Remus was…well, he was glowing. It was silly to feel that much for one person so fast, but Sirius was well aware that he was in too deep for rationality. If he concentrated, he could still feel the tingle of Remus’ hand clasped in his own as he teetered along the edge of a precipice. That’s fitting, he thought wryly. It feels like this has been one fall after another. Maybe it was the sun, maybe it was the forest’s magic, or maybe it was Sirius’ irrational heart, but Remus shone with a low golden light.

When Sirius finally went into the kitchen, Minerva was sitting primly on the table next to a cup of tea and a small plate of biscuits. “Can cats eat biscuits?” he wondered aloud, only to be met with a disapproving look. “Sorry.”

“Good morning.” Dumbledore entered the kitchen in long blue robes and a tall hat decorated with stars, looking every inch the fairytale wizard. “How did you sleep?”

“Quite well, thank you.” Sirius took the proffered scone and tea gratefully.

“This journey will be difficult for you, Sirius Black.” Dumbledore settled into his chair with a mild expression, seemingly oblivious to the way all of Sirius’ blood drained into his feet and left him swaying in his seat.How did he...“You will need to face that which you do not wish to.”

“I’m not afraid to face my parents,” he gritted out. “Not anymore. I’ll gladly give them a piece of my mind.”

Dumbledore’s blue eyes sharpened as he finally looked up. “I’m not talking about them. You know the Death Eaters have brought others into the fold.”

Sirius' fury went out like a candle in the wind and his shoulders sagged. “I know.”

“Good. You’re an intelligent young man.” Dumbledore spread some frightfully orange jam on a biscuit. “If you can spare an eye, keep it trained on your friends, especially young Remus.”

“Why? What’s going to happen to them?”

“As of right now, nothing out of the ordinary.” Dumbledore paused, then set his breakfast down and faced Sirius fully. “Though if Remus goes to the Wildland, he will die.”

The temperature of the room dropped twenty degrees. “What's wrong with him?”

“I am not at liberty to say, but I can tell you this: he has hidden depths that the Wildland will take far too kindly to, in a manner which he will not survive.”

“Oh, you’re awake.” James’ drowsy voice broke through Sirius’ spiraling thoughts as he shuffled into the kitchen and took the adjacent seat. He scratched Minerva behind the ears and she purred. “The others will be out soon.”

“Good.”

James squinted at him. “You seem…off. Are you feeling okay?”

“Just worried.” Sirius forced a reassuring smile. “Really, I’ll be fine.”

True to James’ word, the other five members of their party trouped out to the table over the course of half an hour. The meal was the quietest they had ever had together.

“So,” Lily finally said, breaking the silence. “I suppose we should figure out groups.”

“I still think it’s a bad idea,” James offered halfheartedly. “But you’re right.”

“I’ve been to the borders of the Wildland many times with my dads, so I should be in that group,” Dorcas said as she folded and refolded her napkin. “James, I think it might be best if you came with me, since Marajis and the Eastern Coast are allies.”

“I’ll go with you, too,” Marlene said.

“I don’t know if that’s the best idea,” Sirius said as gently as he could. “You know southern Silvalith like the back of your hand and you can call in favors in Tidoras if we need them. It’s the same with Peter.”

“I’m not leaving my fiancée to go running through a land of monsters without me to watch her back,” Marlene snapped. “I suppose you’re going to go with James, though?”

“No, I’m not.”

James froze, then turned slowly to look at him. “What?”

Sirius’ mouth was dry despite the tea. “I’m going with the Silvalith group.”

“Sirius, we’re a team, you promised—”

“I’m useless in the Wildland, Jamie,” Sirius interrupted. “I have no legitimate ties to the Eastern Coast and I’ve never seen a speck of that place. As much as I want to go with you, I can help in Silvalith. Please don’t fight me on this.”

The betrayal on James’ face hurt more than anything Sirius had ever felt. He had promised to stick by James’ side in that stupid, freezing cave, and here he was backing out on it so soon.

“I’ll go with you and Dorcas,” Lily said. “It’s good to have someone on your team who doesn’t use a bow in a fight.”

Remus cleared his throat. "I'll go with you, too--"

"No," Sirius blurted. The table went even quieter. "You can't go with that group."

"...why not?" Remus blinked slowly at him; to his left, James scoffed under his breath.

Sirius looked to Dumbledore, who remained impassive.f*cking wizard. "Just trust me on this, okay?"

"Alright." Remus still looked wary.

“I can provide you with transportation out of the forest and into the Wildland, but you will need to find your own way back from there,” Dumbledore said. "You have approximately an hour before you must go.”

One hour. One lousy hour to steel his nerves and say goodbye to his best friend in the world, his brother, his Jamie. The seven of them stood without another word and began to gather their meager belongings. Dumbledore took each group aside and gave them a new drawstring bag with a map, a compass, and a variety of oddities that Sirius was half-convinced he put in as a joke. “It is time,” he said at last as one of four cuckoo clocks in the kitchen began to roar like a lion. “James, Dorcas, and Lily, please follow me.”

Though he only called three names, the whole group trailed out of the house and onto the thick moss that coated the ground. The forest was beautiful in the daytime, shimmering and humming with life. The multicolored blots that Sirius remembered from the previous night were actually small balls of rainbow flame bouncing through the trees; from what he could tell, they were also the source of the buzzing noise.

“Wait,” he blurted as Dumbledore raised his arms high above his head. “Can I—can we say goodbye first?”

The old wizard’s face filled with kindness and he nodded. “Of course.”

Sirius was moving before he even thought it through and James met him in the middle, colliding with a harsh gasp. “It’s not goodbye,” he managed around the clog in his throat. “This is not goodbye, okay? I’m so sorry I’m not going with you.”

“I understand,” James said, his desperate voice muffled in Sirius’ shoulder. “Stay safe, and keep an eye out. I'll meet you at the border, yeah?”

“I would follow you to the ends of the earth,” he whispered. “I would.”

James’ fingers dug into his back. “I know.”

With tremendous effort, Sirius released his hold, swallowing down tears. “I’m sorry, Jamie.”

“Do what you need to do, and tell me later.” His hazel eyes were kind, and sad. Sirius wished he knew how to explain. It felt as if they never had enough time.

“Hey, Red?” Sirius called as James turned back to Dumbledore. “Take care of him for me?”

Lily nodded. “I will.”

“Dorcas? Our window is getting smaller.” Dumbledore’s voice was gentle as he looked over to the last member of the party, who was holding Marlene like it was the last time.

“I love you so much,” Marlene whispered, brushing a stray lock of dark, coiled hair behind Dorcas’ ear.

“I love you more,” Dorcas responded, pulling her in for a kiss. Sirius’ chest ached at their love, at the care with which Marlene cradled her face in her hands. Two halves of one soul.

When they finally separated and Dorcas took her place in the circle, Dumbledore began to chant a series of flowing phrases in a strange language. Sirius did not understand it, but he felt as though the meaning of each word was just on the tip of his tongue.

In a flash of light, the trio was gone.

Chapter 6: The Wildland

Chapter Text

If Lily ever saw that f*cking wizard again, she was going to kill him. “How’re you doing, Dorcas?” she shouted over the roar of quaking trees and the rumble of the earth.

“I’ve been better!” Dorcas clung tighter to her branch as the trunk groaned beneath her; with each lurching roll, the arrows in her quiver came closer to spilling out.

“James?”

James’ hand slipped on the flat bark and he scrambled to wrap both arms around the tree. “Ask me again when this stops!”

“If we make it out of here, you and I are going to have a discussion about insulting magic lands!” Lily’s heart leaped as the wood beneath her hands gave a threatening creak and she silently cursed her decision to follow a gang of idiots halfway across the world. Maybe if she had just minded her own business and stayed home, she wouldn’t be in this situation.

A strange rustling noise grew steadily louder and she craned her neck to look further into the jungle, where the canopy swayed and shook with its own rhythm. “Something’s coming!” Dorcas warned.

“I’d rather face an earthquake than being eaten alive!” James called as he began to slide down his perch.

“Agreed,” Lily and Dorcas chorused. Alright, Lils, step-by-step. Imagine you’re at home. Trees in Bailey were easy to climb—their gnarled knots and sturdy branches were ideal for long afternoons spent reaching toward the sky with little fear of falling. These trees, on the other hand, had sand-smoothed bark that made her hands itch when she touched them.

She made it halfway down before her foot slipped from its hold and her palms, soaked in fear sweat, skidded into open air. The cracked ground was hard as stone when she smacked down and her breath disappeared in a single huff, making her vision turn black for a moment. “Lily!” Two warm hands dragged her upright and a blurry form swam in and out of focus. “Are you hurt?”

“Dorcas,” she wheezed as soon as the first wisps of air entered her lungs. “Fine. ‘m okay.”

“Good. Come on!” Lily stumbled to her feet and kept a tight hold on Dorcas’ wrist as the three of them sprinted deeper into the forest, away from the sunbaked wasteland where they had first been dropped. It was, unsurprisingly, quite difficult to run when the earth made a point of trying to turn itself inside out every few seconds; Lily was sure her shoulders would be bruised from bumping into everything within three feet of her.

The rustling turned into screeching and they poured on speed, but they weren’t quick enough to outrun the horde filling the trees. Lily had heard stories of the monsters of the Wildland: massive boars with metal tusks, sand worms the size of rivers, and flesh-eating deer were some of the frequent characters in fairy tales. She had never believed them before.

Dorcas let go of her hand and spun around, nocking an arrow and firing into the trees in record time. There was an earsplitting scream and a huge bird dropped from the tangle of vines, its razor-sharp beak open wide enough that Lily could see the rows of teeth inside. “We can’t go any faster! James, give me a hand!”

But James was already in motion and a second bird fell mere seconds later with a red-feathered arrow embedded in its neck. Lily drew her axe—the wave of rippling vines overhead was interspersed with feathers in a rainbow of colors, and the cacophony of shrieking bird calls was deafening.

The first dive-bomber was met with a shorter, blue-fletched arrow as Dorcas turned her attention from shooting blindly into the group to picking them off one by one. “We can’t do this forever,” James shouted. “Sooner or later, we’ll run out of arrows, and I don’t know where we’ll get new ones!”

The earthquake shuddered to a stop as if his words had shocked it into silence; Lily nearly fell over at the sudden change and her knees did their best to vacate her body. The monsters flew back into the canopy and disappeared with a soft shush of leaves, leaving five dead birds in the glade as the only trace of their existence. “James, what did you do?” Lily asked cautiously, keeping her axe ready just in case.

“...I don’t know.”

“It’s really quiet,” Dorcas said. “I don’t like it.”

“Do we keep walking?”

“Hang on a second.” James lowered his bow and crept toward the corpse of a falcon-like creature, grasping his arrow by the shaft. With a sharp tug, it came free, and the bird disintegrated into a patch of— “Is that...moss?”

“What the f*ck?” Lily murmured.

“These are gryphons,” Dorcas said as she followed James’ lead and collected her arrows. “I’ve seen them buzz the border once or twice, but they never came close enough to be an issue and they never travel in packs.”

“So the Wildland is out to get us?” Lily rolled her eyes. “I wonder whose fault that is.”

James sighed deeply. “Look, it was a simple observation and I wasn’t exactly expecting the whole place to take offense.”

“It’s magic! That’s what magic places do!”

“How would you know?”

“How would you?”

“Will both of you give it a rest?” Dorcas interrupted in exasperation. “At least now we know what to expect. We should get started on looking for the weapon if we want to have any hope of catching up to the others.”

“Dumbledore gave us a map, right?” Lily set the rucksack down and loosened the drawstring. Carefully, she poured the contents out onto the ground and began sifting through. “Looks like we have…an empty waterskin, some fabric, and a broken compass. Oh, here it is.”

Honestly, the other items in the bag should have prepared Lily for disappointment. “What?” James asked as her face fell.

“There’s no names or anything, just lines and a dot.” She laid it out for all of them to see and weighed down the corners with the other useless objects.

“I’m going to kill that wizard,” Dorcas muttered as she squinted at the map. “Which way is north?”

“No clue.”

James ran a hand through his hair. “Y’know, I thought forgetting a map was bad, but this…”

“So we have a useless map for a monster-infested place none of us have actually been to, and the fate of the world rests on our ability to find a single cryptic spot? That’s not difficult at all,” Dorcas said sarcastically. “Didn’t Dumbledore mention a compass?”

“He said Riddle’s weakness was in the compass rose,” Lily recalled.

“Is there something hidden in the one he gave us?” Without waiting for an answer, Dorcas grabbed the dented bronze compass from the pile of junk and began feeling along the edges. “There aren’t any latches or seams. Do we have to crack it open?”

James shrugged and grabbed one of his arrows. “Can’t get more broken than it already is.”

“No!” Lily snatched the compass away from them. “We’re not just going to shatter it! It has to have some sort of purpose.”

“Does it, though?”

“A wizard gave it to us, right? That means it’s either helpful or cursed and I’m not ready to die from some sort of booby trap you two set off by prying it apart with an arrowhead.” Lily opened the top and watched the needle spin. “I think we should try and follow it.”

“If it’s cursed, we’ll be walking straight into a trap,” James pointed out.

“I think we have worse things to worry about than traps,” Dorcas said. “There are a lot of stories about what lives in here and I’m not keen on getting killed by any of those. Let’s find some water and a safe place to plan before we make any big decisions.”

They set off deeper into the forest, keeping the edge of the woods in sight in case the gryphons came back. Lily’s knees ached with every step and she prayed a shelter showed itself soon. The sun was astonishingly bright, even through the trees, and it was difficult to tell how much time had passed with the glare; her best guess was that it had been about two hours since they left Dumbledore’s house, but then again her knowledge of magic was limited to the events of the past twenty-four hours. Days could have passed in the time it took for the spell to drop them in the Wildland.

More than once, she caught herself looking over her shoulder for the missing members of their party. Sirius' absence was especially strange, and she realized a few minutes into their journey that she had never actually seen James without his living shadow.

The third or fourth time, he caught her eye. “Why're you looking at me like that?”

She shook her head. “Sorry, I’ll stop. It’s just weird seeing you without Sirius.”

James’ face fell. “Oh. Yeah.”

“What’s the story with that, anyway?”

“What story?”

“He told me he came to live with you when he was sixteen, but most people don’t get adopted by royalty on a whim. He got all weird when I asked where he lived before.”

“Then he probably doesn’t want you to know,” James said, sounding strangely annoyed.

Dorcas shared an uneasy glance with him and indignation sparked in Lily’s chest. “He doesn’t like talking about it.”

“Oh, so you know what happened, too?” When they both stayed quiet, her frustration grew. “I get that I’m not some high-born royal but that doesn’t mean you can just ignore me.”

James stopped in his tracks. “This has nothing to do with your status, and for your information, I’m not royalty.”

“You’re a prince!”

“No, I’m not! My dad is an elected official for the mainland because the last one’s kid didn’t want to continue,” he snapped. “And I don’t plan on following in his footsteps.”

Next to Lily, Dorcas’ eyes widened, and James pressed his lips together in clear regret. “What?”

“I thought you knew.”

“No,” she said, clearly upset. “James, I thought you wanted that.”

“I’m missing something,” Lily said, holding up her hands for a time-out. “What’s happening? You can’t just give up a monarchy, can you?”

“Like I said, the Eastern Coast doesn’t have a monarchy,” James sighed. “Each of the islands, including the mainland, elects a representative when the previous one steps down and their heir decides not to take their place. My dad was elected a few years after I was born and I…I don’t want to do that.”

Dorcas frowned. “Is it because of us? Hang on, have you even told your parents yet?”

James shook his head. “You guys are my best friends. This has nothing to do with you. And no, not yet.”

“How long have you been thinking about this?” He was quiet. “James.”

“A couple years.”

From the look on Dorcas’ face, he may as well have smacked her between the eyes. “But you—at the councils—does Sirius know?”

Lily didn’t think it was possible, but James’ shoulders shrank in further. “Yeah, I think so. My parents would be so disappointed in me if they knew.”

Dorcas’ anger softened. “No, they wouldn’t.”

“They’ve been preparing me my whole life and I’m throwing it away.”

“What’s your plan?” Lily asked at last.

James glanced to her and his face flushed. “My granddad builds and sails ships for all the islands. I want to work with him.”

“That doesn’t sound like throwing your life away to me,” Dorcas said. “James, your parents are good people. They’ll love you no matter what and I’m sure once you explain, they’ll understand.”

“Maybe,” he muttered. “After what happened to Sirius—”

“Your parents are not Sirius’ parents.” Dorcas’ voice was firm. “You know that.”

Right back where we started, Lily thought. “What’s the deal with Sirius’ parents?”

James hesitated for a moment, then started walking again. “Sirius used to be part of a super wealthy and highborn family that wanted him to continue their bid for power. They were involved in some really nasty stuff, a lot of corruption and such, and he told them he wanted to no part in it. They disowned him within a few days.”

“It was a huge deal among the upper-class families,” Dorcas added, her face stormy. “People called it the scandal of the century, especially after they lied to everyone and said he ran away.”

“It happened at a big party, too. He still won’t tell me the whole story.”

"Oh." Lily bit her lip; how was one supposed to respond when they find out the tragic backstory of one of their closest friends? “I don’t think he believed me when I told him he was a good person. I guess that explains why.”

James scowled. “I swear he’s vainer than a co*ckatiel sometimes, but his mother took it upon herself to make sure his self-esteem scrapes the floor. Horrible woman.”

“If I ever meet her, I’ll kick her in the kneecaps for him,” Lily said, earning herself a bark of laughter from him.

“I’d pay to see that,” Dorcas snorted. “I met her once when I was a kid, and once was enough.”

“What’s her name?” Lily asked.

They traded another look, and James sighed. “Walburga Black.”

Lily’s stomach dropped to her feet.

Lily was still thinking about their conversation as they set up camp in an abandoned cave lit by dim crystals that dripped condensation onto the ground. Walburga and Orion Black were notorious for exploiting workers and getting away with it due to their wealth; Lily had heard traders and woodcutters cursing their names in taverns more times than she could count. She had vaguely assumed they had children—most nobles were heir-obsessed enough for her to be right—but never put much thought into it. They weren’t worth her time, especially when they made the people of her trade so angry.

But Sirius? Protective, reckless Sirius who made a point of cheering up the group whenever they needed it? It was hard to believe he was raised in a family like that. I suppose that’s the point, she thought as she spread her cloak over the damp moss and laid down. He’s not like them, and they hate him for it.

Sixteen years old. When Lily was sixteen, her father taught her to use the largest saw he owned; at the same age, almost the same time, Sirius had been thrown out of his family and sent across the continent. I still had a f*cking bedtime, she realized just as she was about to doze off. The urge to hit Walburga Black with a chair increased.

Needless to say, Lily didn’t sleep well that night. She kept watch until sunrise, when James and Dorcas woke up, and they agreed to follow the compass’ needle on the off-chance Dumbledore was actually trying to help them in some secretive way.

“I miss them,” James said around a mouthful of ham, cheese, and bread when they stopped by an unnaturally large tree for lunch. He didn’t have to specify. The distance was on all their minds. “I miss them a lot.”

“Me, too,” Lily admitted. It was silly, but even the sandwiches made her heart ache with homesickness. “The sooner we find this weakness, whatever it is, the sooner we can get back.”

“At least we’re the most efficient of the group. Nobody here would challenge a wild boar to a fight just for kicks,” Dorcas half-joked. The conversation dulled for a while until they began walking again. “So, Lily, tell us about Bailey.”

“What about it?”

Dorcas shrugged. “Anything. The rest of us have known each other decently well, but I don’t know much about you yet, beyond the fact that you can crush us all at checkers and use a lumber axe for anything but its intended purpose.”

“Well, it’s a pretty small place,” Lily laughed. “I think you can see most of the town out the window of my mum and dad’s house.”

“Your dad’s a merchant, right?” James turned to walk backwards ahead of them.

“A woodsman,” she corrected. “He was supposed to go to Varghal to discuss lumber prices, but the mill called him in for extra shifts and I went instead.” A sudden thought struck her and she paused. “If he had gone, he’d...probably be dead right now. Huh.”

“Are you alright?” Concern laced James’ voice. “Lily?”

“What? Oh, I’m—yeah, I’m fine." She shook her head. It was hard to imagine a life without her father. His boisterous laugh, his knowledge of every gnarl in the forest, his quiet encouragement of her when Petunia got too mean. “It’s just weird to think about.”

“What do you do for fun?” Dorcas asked, offering a much-needed subject change. “When you’re not on life-or-death quests with a bunch of strangers, of course.”

“I don’t think any of you count as strangers anymore,” she said with half a smile. “Um, I climbed trees when I was little and went for walks in the woods. They change a lot between seasons and there are all sorts of animals. In winter, the neighborhood kids used to get together and build forts for snowball fights.”

“I wish we got snow,” James mused.

“Frystmark is hoarding it,” Dorcas snorted. “We should get Remus to ship some to the rest of us.”

“You don’t get snow?” Lily supposed she should have known that, but it seemed impossible. Winter was for hot cider, snowmen, and wool socks, not sunshine.

“No,” Dorcas said. “Haven’t you heard the joke? Hisanon is where the sun goes when it’s nighttime? We take it from you all since you don’t appreciate it, but that means we don’t have real seasons.”

“We have seasons back home.” James tilted his head slightly as he thought. “No snow, but there’s a lot of wind and rain off the water. Springtime is the best.”

“I love autumn,” Lily said. “It’s strange not being home to see the leaves change this year.”

“Hopefully we’ll be back before winter sets in,” Dorcas said. She paused for a moment. “I forget what day it is.”

“Oh, f*ck, Sirius and I were just talking about this.” James scrunched his nose up and counted softly under his breath, frowned, and counted again. “It’s been...seven days since the attack.”

“What?”

“I call bullsh*t,” Lily said immediately. “No way.”

“We spent one night in Hemgard, one in the next town, two with your mum, one with Dumbledore, and one in that cave.” James held up his fingers. “Six nights, seven days.”

“It feels like a month,” Dorcas said. Lily nodded in agreement. “Too much has happened in too little time. We need to keep it to one disaster per day, alright?”

In the distance—but not nearly far enough, in Lily’s opinion—something boomed. “You just had to jinx it,” James sighed. “Trees again?”

“Gryphons, probably.”

“Run first, talk later,” Lily suggested, keeping her eyes steadily in the direction the noise had come from. It sounded like heavy footsteps, and she really didn’t want to know what kind of creature was big enough to do that. “Go!”

They took off at a sprint, keeping in a close group with their weapons at the ready. She could hear the galloping footsteps growing closer; it was almost as if a herd of deer were all running at the exact same time. It’s the flesh-eating deer, her terrified brain supplied. All the stories are true.

“Holy f*ck!” James yelped as he looked over his shoulder. Lily glanced backward and saw a bristly hilltop charging through the underbrush at full speed.

No, not a hill. A boar.

“Don’t climb the trees!” she shouted. “We can’t outrun it, but it’ll knock down anything we climb!”

“Those aren’t normal tusks!” Dorcas’ voice cracked with fear. “Is that metal?”

“Let’s not find out!”

“If we can’t outrun it and we definitely can’t beat it in a fight, what the hell are we supposed to do?” James nearly tripped over a large root and Lily’s heart stuttered in her throat. She couldn’t bear to lose any of them, and not just because of the promise she made Sirius. All six of those wild, chaotic, wonderful people were her friends now, and she would keep them safe if it was the last thing she did.

Come on, come on, there has to be something we can use, she thought desperately as she scanned the jungle. Her chest and legs burned from running and she could hear the others panting heavily. “Over there!”

“What?” Dorcas shrieked.

“Would you rather get gored?”

“We’ll die either way!”

“It’s less of a guarantee here, now jump!” Rather than waiting for an answer, Lily shoved her axe into its holster, grabbed Dorcas' hand, and vaulted over the edge of the ravine.

Things got a little hazy after that. The initial drop was short, maybe four feet, before they hit a claylike outcropping that cracked beneath their combined weight and sent them skidding down a steep slope of pebbles, dust, and prickly plants. She lost her hold on Dorcas, but she could hear two different voices alternating between panicked yelling and grunts of pain when they hit a rough patch. The slope came to a sudden end and Lily braced herself for the fall—she hit the rushing water below with a splash, and then everything went dark.

Being underwater was an odd experience. It was quiet, save for the low rumble of the source waterfall that sent her tumbling through the current like a smooth stone. Her senses were completely overwhelmed—her ears popped, her vision was murky, and the only thing she felt was cold. The tightness in her chest snapped her out of her shock and she struggled to the surface, breaking through with a gasp.

“James!” she called frantically, shoving her hair out of her face. She had waded in ponds and the lazy stream by her house before, but she wasn’t the strongest swimmer. To be honest, she had not thought there would be water at the base of the hill. "Dorcas!"

James surfaced with a spluttering cough, saw her, looked around, then immediately ducked under the water again. She bobbed further down the river and hoped with everything in her heart that her half-baked plan hadn’t accidentally killed two of her friends.

There was a splash behind her and she turned as quickly as she could, only to see James and Dorcas struggling against the current. “Head for the bank!” James yelled, leaning back and kicking his feet. He was holding Dorcas tight to his chest; she looked terrified. “Lily, hurry!”

Lily paddled sideways as hard as she could until she reached a tangle of grass and used it to haul herself out of the river, where she collapsed on her stomach. James splayed on his back on the dry earth and tried to catch his breath while Dorcas coughed up water. “I can’t swim,” she managed, glaring at Lily.

“Sorry. Didn’t think there would be water.”

James’ head lolled to the side and he squinted at her. “You jumped over a cliff not knowing what was below it?”

“In my defense, there was a f*cking massive boar with metal tusks chasing us down.”

Dorcas’ coughing turned into giggles, then full-blown laughter; Lily and James followed suit until they were all slightly hysterical with joy and relief. “We lived through that,” she gasped. “Let’s never do it again, alright?”

“Deal,” Lily and James said in unison.

“Our stuff must be wrecked,” Lily groaned, peeling the bag off her back. She knelt and emptied the contents of the rucksack onto the grass. “Or…not.”

“Woah.” James scooted closer. “You were underwater, right?”

In lieu of an answer, Lily gestured at her soaked clothing and dripping hair. “Well, he is a wizard,” Dorcas said. “Making a waterproof bag would not be the craziest thing he did.”

“True.”

Lily spread the map out again, using river rocks to hold the edges down. The squiggles remained stubbornly solid. “This doesn’t make any more sense than it did yesterday.”

“Hang on.” Dorcas bent over the map and traced the thick lines, then looked around them. “Yes, it does. Does this look familiar to you?”

Lily looked at where she was pointing, then glanced around the clearing. The wobbly shape on the map was the exact same as the waterfall in the distance. “Oh.”

“Which means this…” Dorcas traced down the squiggle and tapped the page. “Is about where we are.”

“So where are we supposed to go?”

“Wait. Wait, wait, wait.” James poked Dorcas on the shoulder. “It’s ‘in the compass rose’, right? Four corners. Four countries.”

Dorcas’ eyes widened. “You don’t think…”

Lily scanned the map until she saw an intersection marked with a small black dot. “That’s where the borders meet, isn’t it?”

“The Middle Kingdom.” James touched one section, then moved clockwise. “Marajis. The Wildland. Silvalith. Four countries that meet at one point.”

“That’s where we need to go,” Lily breathed. “I’m so glad you two are on my team.”

They stuffed Dumbledore’s items back in the rucksack and hurried away from the river, keeping the compass steady as its tilted needle pointed straight ahead; Lily could already feel the sun’s heat drying her clothes as they hiked through tangled vines and high grass. The landscape grew more and more desolate as they drew closer to their destination, turning from mossy earth to the same color and texture as slate. The twisting plants were blacker than charcoal and just as brittle. It even smelled dusty. Dead. Leeched of all life.

If a shadow had a scent, this was it.

The ground dipped as they neared the center of a crater; everything around it had been blasted smooth and shiny by some enormous force, and in the middle of the shallow pit laid a rusty dagger. It didn’t look special; if Lily didn’t know better, she would have dismissed it as a useless relic. “There it is,” she said, pointing to the blade.

James picked his way around broken stones and thorny plants. “Will it fit in the bag?”

“I don’t think you should touch it with your bare hands,” Dorcas said. “Your track record with magic things so far has not been great.”

“It was one comment,” James grumbled, though he did refrain from grabbing the dagger. “That doesn’t count as a track record.”

“Still.” Dorcas stepped behind Lily and reached into the bag, then emerged with the piece of fabric. “This should work.”

Carefully, James reached down with the cloth and wrapped King Riddle’s weakness up.

As soon as the dagger left its place, the ground began to shake and a mighty roar grew around them. “Really?” James yelled as he scrambled back up to them and shoved the package in Lily’s bag. “Again?"

“We should aim for Marajis!” Dorcas shouted over the rising howls. “We’ll find help there and it's safer than the Middle Kingdom!”

Neither Lily nor James was particularly inclined to argue, so they followed Dorcas’ lead, stumbling over debris and the gale force winds. The forest teemed with life, but they didn’t stay to meet it and instead crashed through the underbrush until they emerged in a stretch of land similar to the desert they had arrived in.

“That way!” It was too loud to hear Dorcas’ words, but her message was clear as she pointed toward a long line of grass a few hundred feet away. The tumult grew as they ran; Lily was sure something was following them out of the trees and she focused her attention on the pounding of her feet. Do not look back.

As soon as they tumbled into the grass, the air turned fresh and the trembling ground stilled. Lily took a deep breath of the sweet breeze--she hadn't realized how stale the air of the Wildland was until it was gone. Above the treetops, gryphons flapped and screamed, and the whole place looked like it was rioting against an unseen enemy. Something slipped back into the forest behind them, though it was too dark to make out more than a swishing tail.

James whistled lowly as he rolled onto his back. “I’m glad we got out of there."

Just as Lily was about to agree, the bag grew unbearably hot against her back. She untangled its straps and practically threw it to the ground with a yelp; it rattled and smoked for a moment, then went quiet. When nothing else happened, she untied the drawstring and shook the contents out, stepping back quickly just to be safe.

The dagger steamed as she toed the covering away and all three of them gasped. The rusted, corroded metal was shiny and pure silver, revealing an intricate snake with perfect emerald eyes curled up along the hilt and a scale pattern decorating the base of the blade. “It might be pretty, but I still don’t want to touch it,” she muttered, kicking it into the bag once more.

“Turn around and show us your hands!” a stern voice commanded behind them. Lily snatched the bag up for protection as three lithe horses came trotting through the tall grass toward them. Their riders wore leather armor and had their bows trained on their group; as soon as they turned around, the horses stopped and the lead rider removed her helmet. Her face was a mask of shock as she dismounted. “Dorcas?”

“Hestia!” Dorcas ran forward and they met in the middle for a fierce hug.

“I thought you were dead,” Hestia said, pulling away to scan her for injuries. “The news of the attack on Varghal came in two days ago. We’ve been patrolling the borders ever since. What happened?”

“Silval soldiers and mercenaries raided the city in the middle of the night. They kidnapped the royals and the rest of us barely got away with our lives.” The horses nickered and snuffled nervously as Hestia’s face turned grave.

“Is Marlene alright?” she asked.

Dorcas’ lip trembled slightly. “I hope so. We had to split up two days ago.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“She’ll be fine. This is Lily and James, they're friends of mine. Is there a place we can talk about this in private?”

Hestia nodded and looked back to them. “Can either of you ride a horse?” At their silence, she tilted her head toward two of her companions. “You can ride with Alice and Emmeline, and Dorcas will ride with me. You should get comfortable. It’s a bit of a trek.”

Technically, Lily had been less comfortable before, but horseback riding was pretty high up on her list of 'never, ever, do it again'. Emmeline was a talented rider and knew everything about the history of the western lands of Marajis, while Alice and James hit it off immediately and chatted the whole way. It was hilarious—and a bit endearing, if Lily was being honest—watching him cling to a someone six inches shorter while he tried not to slip off the saddle.

“Where are you from?” Emmeline asked as the sun began to set and the field turned a million shades of copper and rose; not for the first time, Lily wished she was an artist so she could remember it forever.

“The Middle Kingdom, up north in a town called Bailey. You?”

Emmeline pointed to a distant shadow of buildings beyond the rippling heat waves. “That’s my hometown, Fansen.”

“Vance?”

“Fan-sen,” Emmeline repeated. “The second ‘n’ is soft.”

Fan-seh, Lily mimicked in her head. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, a lot of people get it wrong the first time. What are you doing so far away from home?”

“It’s…kind of a long story. Are you one of Dorcas’ friends?” Up ahead, Dorcas and Hestia were talking in low voices.

“The four of us learned to ride together,” Emmeline explained. From the look on her face, Lily got the sense that learning horseback with someone was a much deeper concept in Marajis than back home. “Hestia became captain of the border guard a year ago and specifically requested that Alice and I be on her team. Dorcas was a little busy, as you can imagine.”

“I bet,” Lily laughed. “It must be nice to work with your friends all the time.”

She nodded. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. We miss Dorcas, though.” There was a moment of hesitation before her muscular shoulders sank. “We were so worried about her.”

“We were lucky,” Lily said. If she closed her eyes and concentrated, she could still smell the acrid smoke of the wall in flames, still hear the screams and the howling of wolves. “Really, really lucky.”

“Is it true? Varghal was burned? The rumors are vague at best and—”

“Yeah.” A lump rose unbidden to her throat as she remembered the beautiful frozen lake and the mountain fortress, whose people welcomed them with open arms. “It was the middle of the night. There was no warning. They lit the gate on fire and killed anyone they came across. Remus—he’s the prince who helped us escape—he went back and said there was nothing left but ashes.”

Emmeline swore under her breath. “I’m going to assume you three were in the Wildland for a reason, but I’m not going to ask why. Whatever you need, I'll help you find it.”

“Thank you.”

A sharp whistle pattern drew both their attention and Lily’s jaw went slack. Ahead, a magnificent city rose against the darkening sky, lit by a thousand torches that made it glow like a miniature star. “Welcome to Hisanon,” Emmeline said proudly. “The city of a hundred lights, capital of Marajis and home to the horse lords.”

Lily and James were a little wobbly once they dismounted, but Dorcas was steady on her feet and nearly vibrating with joy. Lily could relate—entering Bailey after the chaos of the previous days had been the best feeling in the world. “Hestia and I are going to talk for a while, but I think you two should get some sleep,” she said as they stopped outside a large building. Her face shone without a trace of exhaustion.

“You need to rest, too,” Lily protested, though the idea of sleep pulled insistently at the back of her mind. “We can do it as a group in the morning.”

Dorcas gave her a gentle nudge on the arm. “Princess, remember? I have a lot to get done, but I promise I’ll stop before it gets too late. We’re safe here. Don’t worry.” Her face softened as she looked up at the high roofs and wide windows; Lily swore she saw her eyes dampen, but elected not to mention it. "It’s good to be home."

"Sleep well," Lily said after a moment of peaceful quiet. "We'll see you in the morning."

"Good luck,” James added. He blew out a long breath as Dorcas walked arm-in-arm with Hestia down a wide path. “And then there were two.”

“And then there were two,” Lily echoed.

“I really hate splitting up.”

“Same.”

Alice appeared from the stables with Emmeline on her heels and a smile on her face. “We have plenty of rooms for you to stay in,” she said. “And food, if you’re hungry.”

Lily had never followed someone faster and probably never would again. Their rooms were cozy and cool against the rippling heat of the prairie outside and she reveled in the change; her vest and pants had been useful everywhere else, but between the desert, jungle, and grassland she was beginning to overheat. Emmeline and Alice kindly refrained from asking them any more questions until they were done shoving bread and meat into their mouths—Lily would never be a picky eater again, holy f*ck—and pointed them toward the washrooms.

Rivers did an amazing job of getting into every nook and cranny, but there was no feeling like scrubbing down in clean, fresh water that wasn’t full of silt. Lily stayed in the tub until the water was cold enough to make her shiver before rebraiding her hair and slipping into loose pajamas woven with an intricate pattern.

“Where’s James?” she asked when she entered the room again and found Emmeline snacking on some of the dates.

“His room is next door,” she said casually, then did a double take. “It’s okay, you’re safe here. The doors aren’t locked, so you can go wherever.” Lily managed a half-smile and settled down onto a cushion. “You really aren’t comfortable apart, are you?”

“I haven’t slept alone in almost two weeks,” she confessed, a little embarrassed. “In almost every place we’ve stayed, we’ve been attacked or forced to split up. I’m already worried about the others.”

“Who else was with you?”

“Marlene, her friend Peter, James’ brother, and Remus, the prince of Frystmark. They’re somewhere in the Middle Kingdom right now, I think.”I hope.

“Dorcas has mentioned Remus before. They’re close.”

Something in Emmeline’s tone prickled at the back of Lily’s neck. “You don’t like him?”

“Never met him.”

A realization dawned on Lily. The tension in her voice, the way her face had lit up when they appeared from the Wildland only to drop when Marlene was mentioned, her hesitation before leaving Dorcas and Hestia to walk together… “You like Dorcas.”

“She’s engaged,” Emmeline said.

“To Marlene, not Remus.”

“Obviously. I’m one of her bridesmaids.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’d rather be her friend than not have her at all.” Emmeline shrugged one shoulder. Her warm face turned sad for a moment before she looked to Lily. “Dorcas is just one of those people that you can’t help but love. It was bound to happen eventually. The worst part is, I can’t even hate Marlene.”

“You’re an amazing woman, and anyone would be lucky to have you,” Lily said quietly.

Emmeline raised a brow. “You’ve known me for seven hours.”

“And you’ve been nothing but brave, kind, and welcoming.”

A smile crinkled the edges of her deep brown eyes. “I’m glad Dorcas has you on her team. Really, if there’s anything you need for your journey, I’ll help you get it.”

"That means the world to hear,” Lily promised. She had never been particularly good at making friends—perhaps that, like everything else, was about to change.

She glanced out the window and sighed through her nose. "I should probably let you sleep now.”

"Thank you again, Emmeline." Lily received a gentle squeeze to her hand before Emmeline stood and disappeared down the hall, leaving a torch burning in the sconce by the door. The sheets were soft as Lily slipped into the bed, but she stared at the ceiling for an indeterminate amount of time as the sound of the city outside slowly died down. She tried closing her eyes, counting sheep, and about a million different sleeping positions before giving up and padding into the hall.

The door to the right of her own swung open after only two soft knocks—James looked exhausted and wide awake at the same time. “Hey.”

“Hey. Can I come in?” He held the door open further in answer and she sat at the foot of the bed, tucking her legs under herself as he flopped onto his back on top of the sheets. Now or never, she thought, gathering her courage. Their adventure would not stop in Hisanon, no matter how much she wished it would. Something had to give before they kept going on as a team. “You stopped flirting with me.”

James frowned. “What?”

“Before we got to Dumbledore’s, you were insufferable,” she snorted as she laid next to him. “But you’ve been awfully normal since then.”

He stayed quiet for a long moment. “You seemed uncomfortable,” he finally said. “You’re smart, and strong, and funny, and I figured you wouldn’t appreciate getting stuck on a life-threatening quest with some…gross guy.”

“You’re not gross. Awkward, yes. A little over the top, definitely. Mildly annoying at times, but never gross.”

“Thanks?”

“You’re welcome.” A few beats of silence hung between them. “I’m sorry about Sirius.”

James exhaled and his nose whistled a bit—to her surprise, it was almost cute. “I’m more worried about him than anything. It’s my job to protect him.”

“I’m a hundred percent sure he thinks it’s the other way around.”

“That’s just who he is. Sirius finds someone he cares about and goes all in, and it’s gotten him bruised more than once. He’s never left me before and I’ve never left him, either. Six years and the only time we’re really apart is the councils.”

“Why did he come this year?'

“My parents thought he’d keep me in line.” Lily chuckled at the idea and soon they were both muffling their laughter into their hands. “Even though that was doomed to fail from the start, I’m glad he was there.”

“Me, too.” Lily paused, letting the sounds of the city at night lull her. “Can I stay tonight? It feels weird being alone.”

“Absolutely. I can sleep on the floor if you want.”

“Please don’t, I’d feel bad.”

“Alright.” They both curled up under the covers and for about ten seconds, the only sound was their breathing. “Night, Lily.”

Her name sounded nice in his voice. The awkwardness from Varghal was long gone. “Sweet dreams, James.”

Lily opened her eyes to a gentle wind buffeting her hair and the sound of distant horses, along with many voices from below her window. James was on the other side of the bed, tucked in a tight ball in contrast to her own spread eagle. She stretched her legs out and reveled in the pop of her back and the heavenly mattress.

“James.” She poked him on the shoulder. “James, wake up.” When he didn’t budge, she shook him lightly. “James.”

He snuffled against the pillow and batted her hand away. “Five more minutes.”

Lily rolled her eyes as she climbed out of the bed and wandered back to her own room. There was no harm in letting him sleep, but they would have to leave at some point soon if they wanted to have half a chance of catching up to the rest of the group.

She had just finished washing her face when there was a light knock on her door; Emmeline smiled when she opened it, holding out a small bundle. “Dorcas had them washed last night. I figured I’d check in this morning, see how you were doing.”

The roughspun green and brown fabric of Lily’s clothes was soft, and clean of the stains of their journey. Someone had stitched one torn sleeve with a careful hand; tears rose unbidden to her eyes as she traced the familiar cloth and the care with which they had been treated. Her mother’s hug already felt so long ago. Emmeline’s kindness was jarring compared to the unrelenting terror of the past few days. “Thank you.”

A hand brushed her arm. “Lily?”

“James is still asleep, sorry,” she said briskly, sniffing her tears back. Pull it together. “Did Dorcas go to bed like she promised?”

“Only if Hestia knocked her over the head,” Emmeline answered with a grin. “She’s in the dining hall. I’ll dump some water on your friend if he’s not up in ten.”

By the time Lily was done getting dressed, James was awake and rustling around in his room. She knocked on the door, and when nobody answered, leaned closer to the wood. “I’m heading to the dining hall to see Dorcas, d’you want to come with me?”

“One second!” There a thump and a muffled curse before James appeared in the doorway with his hair sticking up at all angles as he wrestled his other boot on. “Yes, absolutely, let’s go.”

The hall was not hard to find—a long line of people stood outside, and Lily and James only made it through because Alice recognized them. At the end of an intricately-carved table, Dorcas was up to her elbows in paperwork. “Morning,” Lily said as she took a seat next to her. “Did you sleep?”

“I did.”

“How long?”

Dorcas glanced up at her and cracked a smile. “Long enough. Hestia forced me to go to bed just after one and I slept until dawn, which was really wonderful. I was thinking we’d leave tomorrow morning, too. There’s too much here to get done in one day, and I know it’s not ideal for catching up to the others but it’ll give you two time to learn a bit more about riding before we go.”

James, who had taken the seat on her other side, went ashen. “We’re riding horses again?”

“Unless you’d like to spend a week and a half walking, yes. Don’t worry, you’ll pick it up easily enough.” Dorcas shuffled through a sheaf of paper and sighed. “I’ll try to meet you in the stable for lunch. I'll be monopolizing Hestia and Emmeline for a bit, but Alice can probably help you pack and figure out basic principles.”

"We'll be fine," James assured her, gentling his voice. "Make sure you eat and drink some water, yeah?"

She smiled weakly, but worry creased her dark brows. "I'll try."

“Lunch," Lily repeated. Dorcas mock-saluted and turned back to her papers. With the sun streaming through the high windows, she truly looked like a future queen.

The horses of Hisanon were well-trained and absolutely beautiful—Emmeline shone with pride as she talked about their incredible stamina and speed. “If I had to wager a guess, I’d say you’ll be near Bailey in three or four days, tops,” she said, absently stroking a mare’s black-and-white nose as it nuzzled her for treats.

James eyed a roan warily as it nibbled at his ear. “At the end of this, we’ll be back home and I’ll never have to see these things again and everything will be just right again.”

Lily smiled. She found herself believing that more and more with each passing hour.

Chapter 7: The Chase

Chapter Text

Life without James sucked. Really, it did, and Sirius was feeling the full effects within ten minutes of his absence, when Dumbledore began dropping hints that he wanted them to leave his cottage as soon as possible. They obliged all too happily, but it felt fundamentally wrong to only have four people where there should have been seven. None of them led the group, either—it was more like wandering in a loose pack, all on edge with nobody willing to take control entirely. Lily and James were the unspoken leaders, after all, and Dorcas was their glue. Sirius hated leading groups, and for all her talk, he knew Marlene preferred being the right-hand woman. It was one of the many reasons they got along so well.

“Are we camping here for the night?” Peter asked as they settled in a glade to eat. Dumbledore’s warning about Death Eaters tracking them into the woods hung over their heads like an anvil waiting to fall, despite his promise that they would be safe on their journey out.

“I’d rather not leave a safe place any sooner than we have to,” Sirius said as he pulled the last of Mrs. Evans' sandwiches out of his bag. They were battered and on their last legs, but edible. “Dumbledore said the Death Eaters avoided the forest, right?”

“Yeah.” Marlene waved an inquisitive ball of purple fire away. The magic flames were like little birds, following them down each path and bringing warm, glittering breezes wherever they passed. “Besides, it’ll take the other team days to get back from the Wildland. Even if the old man dropped them directly on top of the weapon, they’ll probably be gone for a week or more.”

“We can’t stall for too long,” Remus muttered. A vivid blue flame whooshed beneath his nose and made him sneeze; Sirius smiled to himself at the adorably startled expression on his face. “I hate the idea of moving too far without them, though. Maybe we should go toward Glastam first and gather information? We can track any leads while buying them time to search. I’d rather not cross the border without them if we can help it.”

“Wasn’t crossing the border the whole point of splitting up?” Peter took a large bite of his sandwich. “I mean, if we find the caravan…”

Sirius winced. They had come all this way to find the carriage; the thought of facing Euphemia and Fleamont and confessing that he had left James behind was unbearable. “We’ll do what we have to do,” he said at last, though each word pained him. “If we find the caravan, we’ll break your parents out and take them with us, then wait for the others.”

“We won’t enter the city without them,” Remus agreed.

Marlene rubbed the junction of her neck and shoulder where Dumbledore’s bag rested, grimacing. “Where do we go now? If we’re staying the night, we should get near the edge of the woods so we can cover more ground in the morning.”

“Glastam is south, south-east of here,” Sirius said, squinting at the fading sun’s position. “I say we head that way as long as we can.”

“Sounds good.” Remus brushed the crumbs off his pants and stood, offering a hand to Sirius. He took it after a brief moment’s hesitation, trying not to focus on his calluses or the thin scars tracing across the back of his palm. Hold steady, he reminded himself as Remus’ gaze lingered just a second longer than necessary. There are bigger things to worry about right now.

His life had been so simple before this. He would wake up, get dressed, accompany James wherever he went as a bodyguard and friend, then go to bed. It was an easy life, a beautiful respite from his past and current state, and yet it seemed so long ago. He hated the fact that his body remembered how to flee so easily; years of unlearning constant vigilance, wasted.

Sirius breathed deeply as they started off again, allowing the forest to fill him up. It was clear and sweet—unusually so. There was nothing threatening about the feeling, but it was so strange compared to the minty scent of Varghal or the rolling earthiness of Bailey. Even Silvalith’s woods, with their towering oaks and singing birches that were perfect for climbing, had an underlying natural aura.

“Do we have any money left?” Peter asked later as the sun began to dip over the distant mountains and turned the sky all manner of colors. “Once we’re out of these woods, we’ll need a place to stay.”

“The last time we stayed at an inn didn’t end so well,” Remus said wryly. “I think we’d be safer in the woods.”

“Winter is on the way and our clothes aren’t meant for cold weather,” Marlene pointed out. “I’d rather go out fighting Death Eaters than freezing to death on the ground.”

“We can light fires.”

“What about food?” Sirius interjected before the debate derailed them from the issue at hand. “I don’t know about you, but I’d rather not starve and I don’t actually know how to hunt.”

“Eating things from a magic forest seems like a bad idea, too,” Peter added. “We need money.”

Remus shrugged. “I know how to hunt.”

“Really?”

“Import taxes for a frozen tundra in the dead of winter are ridiculous and there are a lot of people to feed. I learned to skin a rabbit when I was eight.”

Do not find that attractive, Sirius warned himself. That’s a bloody and gory thing and should not give you butterflies.

His body, sadly, refused to listen. “Let’s find the edge of the woods and figure it out from there, okay?”

The rest of the group murmured their agreement, and they forged on until the last of the sunlight disappeared.

The second day of their journey started off well enough, much to Sirius’ surprise. The temperature had dropped in the night, forcing them all to huddle together for warmth; nobody wanted to risk chopping branches off a forest like this. They found the road within a few short hours, but almost immediately wished they hadn’t.

Outside the safety of Dumbledore’s woods, a fine layer of frost coated everything. Their breath steamed in the cold and, though their instinctive response was to go back into the magic barrier, they found that whatever spell protected them had broken once they stepped out.

“Do you see any towns?” Marlene asked, pulling her sleeves down over her hands.

“Just houses,” Sirius said apologetically. “And not many, at that.”

Peter shivered. “I’m freezing my ass off out here. Can we ask someone for a map at least?”

“Your ass will be fine,” Remus sighed, though he pulled off his heavy coat and handed it to him. He rolled his eyes at Peter’s hesitation. “Take it, please. I’m plenty warm.”

“I guess this is a welcome break from ten feet of snow, eh?” Marlene teased, nudging him.

The corners of Remus’ eyes crinkled and Sirius’ chest hitched. It was a mere ghost of the smile he had seen all those days ago, but it was a breath of fresh air after the solemn frowns and distant staring. “Exactly.”

“There!” Peter’s exclamation had them all on guard immediately—Sirius’ sword was halfway out of its sheath before he even registered what was happening. “Look, there’s a town!”

“f*ck, Pete, you could’ve led with that.” Marlene blew out a long breath and put her longsword away again. “I thought we were under attack.”

Sirius followed Peter’s line of sight; sure enough, a small clump of chimneys grew more and more apparent as the morning mist lifted. “I thought we agreed not to stay at inns?”

“We can listen for any information,” Peter said. “If the caravan has passed by here, the townspeople will know. Besides, it’s not like regular people are going to know our faces.”

Marlene seemed unconvinced, but a strong wind blew through just as she opened her mouth to argue and a small squeak came out instead. Sirius couldn’t hold down a shudder of his own as his fingers and toes went numb for a solid five seconds. “Oh, f*ck, we need to get inside.”

“Yep,” Peter managed, stomping his feet to get some blood flow back into them.

Sirius led the way, gritting his teeth each time a new gust bit to his bones and trying his best not to dwell on the fact that he was, apparently, the new leader. Hurry up, Jamie. If you get eaten by some mutant pig and leave me to guide this quest, I’ll kill you myself.

They reached the town half an hour later, red-nosed and a blue-lipped as they entered a tavern called The Bronze Kraken in a tumble of half-frozen limbs. “Close the damn door!” the barkeep snapped, scowling at them. “D’you want us all to freeze?”

“Sorry.” Sirius blew hot air into his hands and nearly collapsed in an open chair near the back wall.

“I don’t think we can sing our way into some lunch here,” Marlene muttered as she stretched her legs out beneath the table. The patrons were a rowdy bunch, mostly deep-voiced men with large tankards of ale and other suspicious drinks that dripped through their thick beards. The sawdust covering the floor was far too loose (and damp) for Sirius’ liking, and he made the executive decision not to address the general stench of the place.

“The good news is, I can’t imagine Death Eaters coming here,” he said under his breath, scooting his chair in closer.

A dirty towel slapped down on the table edge, making them all jump. “What're you buying?” the barkeep sneered.

“What can we get for this?” Peter asked, digging around in his pocket for their last few coins.

The man gave him a disbelieving look, then scoffed and took the money. “You’re lucky I’m in a good mood. Any other day and I woulda thrown you lurkers out.”

“We’re not lurking!” Marlene said indignantly.

He frowned, turning to Sirius. “You let your woman talk like that?”

Sirius didn’t even have to look at her to know she was preparing to curse this idiot to hell and back. “Sorry, sir,” he said quickly, squeezing her arm under the table. “She’s a tad high-spirited.”

“He’ll pay for that,” Marlene hissed as the barkeep headed toward another table, shaking his head. “Your woman.”

“Take it easy, we’ll leave as soon as we can. Excuse me?” He leaned over to the neighboring table and turned on his most charming smile.

The two men sitting there gave him the kind of look he would expect from someone who had just stepped in rotten trash. “What?” one of them grunted.

“I was wondering if you’ve seen anyone from Silvalith passing through here recently.”

“Why?”

“Well, my friends and I were going to Varghal—”

The other man snorted. “Oh, you haven’t heard?”

“Heard what?”

“The whole city’s torched. Raiders, they say, though I’m more inclined to think those drunk northern bastards set the place ablaze on accident.” His companion roared with laughter. Sirius felt sick. “I mean, whaddya expect from folks who let their kids roll about with overgrown mutts? They had it comin’, ‘s all I’m saying--”

A loud bang silenced the pub and Sirius barely had time to blink before the man was hauled halfway across the table.

Remus' eyes blazed with fury as he balled his fists tighter in the front of a greasy shirt; his chair laid forgotten on the floor. "You know nothing of what happened there," he snarled, inches from the man’s nose. "Say it again."

The man's ruddy face went ashen and Remus gave him a hard shake, dragging him further over the tabletop. The ancient wood groaned in protest.

"Say it again, you f*cking coward."

He stayed silent.

Remus released him with a hard shove and straightened, leaving the man to scramble back to his seat. "Anyone else?" he demanded, every inch the prince of the North despite his patched coat and dirt-smudged face. When none responded, he crossed the tavern floor in a dozen long steps without a backward glance and slammed the door behind him so hard the wall shuddered.Sirius shared a wide-eyed look with Marlene, who nodded; he stood, far quieter than Remus had, and followed him out.

There was no sign of a disturbance in the sleepy town, just melting frost and bored people that milled about without any real purpose. Remus was nowhere in sight. Where did you go? Sirius turned in a slow circle as he wandered along the main road. None of the shops, certainly, and going back to the road without them seemed highly unlikely. A swath of dark green caught Sirius’ periphery. Of course.

Stepping into a normal forest was soothing, much to his surprise; no strange balls of flame bounced around and nothing hummed in Sirius’ bones, making him itch with the feeling. It even smelled normal, like cold pines and the oncoming winter. Squirrels chattered above him—a small fox with too-large ears scampered across his path as he went in deeper, scanning the trees for flashes of tawny hair.

Water rushed ahead, and after a moment he heard soft splashing noises. Is he…swimming? Sirius followed the noise a little further until he came to the bank of a wide river lined with tumbling white froth. Remus was dangling his legs over an outcropping of weathered rock, tossing stones absently.

Sirius walked down the small slope and sat beside him, staring out over the water. A pebble bounced off a ledge near the middle of the rapids. “Nice shot.”

Remus didn't respond.

“Those guys were assholes.”

That earned him a quiet, but rueful, snort. Remus ducked his head. “Yeah. Yeah, they were.”

“I was kind of hoping you’d give one of ‘em a solid punch to the jaw.”

“I don’t usually start fights.”

“I can go back and do it for you, if you want.”

He laughed lightly; it wasn’t much, but it was enough to bring a smile to Sirius’ face. “That’s alright. I’m sorry I f*cked up your information gathering.”

“Their information was clearly unreliable.”

“Oh?”

“Mhm. If they had more than two braincells to rub together, they would have known that Varghal was the most beautiful city I’ve ever seen. They would have known that its people were incredibly kind and brave, and that it’s impossible to be there for more than two days without falling in love with it.”

Remus paused mid-throw and folded his hands in his lap, rolling the stone between his fingers. “Careful, people are going to start thinking you’re not talking about the city.”

“Maybe I’m not.”

He stilled and Sirius’ stomach lurched. “Sirius.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” He glanced over, but Remus was staring out at the water, lit up in warm tones against the icy blue. “Please don’t be. I—I want to so badly, you have no idea, but there is so much you don’t know about me.”

“That makes two of us. There’s only one thing to do.” Sirius shifted so he was facing Remus with his legs crossed.

Remus looked up, finally. “You’re not going to push me in, are you?”

“What’s your favorite color?”

He blinked. “What?”

“Your favorite color. If it’s too hard, I can—”

“No, no, it’s just—” Remus laughed and shook his head. “Um, it’s green. Like that.” He gestured at the evergreen trees overhead with a half-smile. “In winter, that’s one of the only colors in the snow. What’s yours?”

“I’m a little torn, actually.” Sirius hummed and thought for a second. “Either red or gold.”

“Fancy.”

“Shush, you.” He bumped him on the side. “I like red because James gave me a red shirt my first day in Harindvar. I still have it somewhere, I think.”

“You didn’t have your own clothes?”

Sirius paused. “...I thought you knew. Everyone knew.”

“Knew what?”

“My last name?” Remus tilted his head to the side in clear bewilderment and Sirius raised his eyebrows. “How many Sirius’ do you know?”

“Not m—” Understanding washed over his features in a wave and Sirius felt a familiar stone sink to the bottom of his stomach. “Sirius—”

“Black,” he finished for him. “Yeah. That one. Figured you’d heard.”

But if anything, Remus looked even more confused. “Why didn’t you take clothes with you when you ran?”

It was Sirius’ turn to look out at the river. “Because they gave me an hour to get out of the house after disowning me. I didn’t have time. James’ parents took me in before I got into too much trouble, thankfully.” He laughed humorlessly. “Had to track me halfway across the continent first.”

Remus' face fell, his eyebrows pitching in earnest concern. “I’m sorry.”

“What, you don’t want to know what I did?”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Sirius actively avoided the topic, as a general rule, but honesty was important if he ever wanted to move past the chit-chat stage. “We were at this fancy party and I…said some things I probably shouldn’t have. They’re big believers in Riddle, but I pointed out that a lot of people had been hurt by his policies. Rather loudly. If you hadn’t noticed, I can be a bit of a hothead.”

“You? Never.”

A smile came unbidden to his lips. “Not my most tactful moment.”

“I used to run away all the time.” When Sirius glanced back, Remus was watching the trees again.

“Isn’t that a bit dangerous, considering you live in a frozen tundra?”

“Probably, but the cold wasn’t an issue. Thick coats, and all that. I used to run around the woods, looking for hidden tunnels and ponds from my mum’s fairytales until the sun set or someone dragged me home.” A sudden sadness came to his face. “My parents used to be so angry with me.”

“Why’d you do it?”

He shrugged one shoulder. “I was bored. I was overwhelmed. My whole life, I’ve tried to be the perfect prince and the perfect son, and it got to be too much sometimes. I thought I was wasting my life by staying in the city all the time. Sometimes I did it just to piss off my Da.”

“Why him?”

Remus thought for a long moment, as if working the words around in his mouth. “We’re very different people with very different skill sets. I think he was hoping I’d have less of a wild streak.”

“How rebellious.”

“Dorcas used to get on me all the time about it," he said with a fond shake of his head. "She was terrified I’d fall down a cliff in the middle of the night.”

“You’ve been friends for a while, then?”

“Oh, yeah. She and James see each other all the time, but she was always the quietest of the group and we got along well because of that. I'm not all that good with people. We used to sit together and read in the Great Hall under these huge blankets until our parents came and found us.”

“Great Hall?” Sirius wracked his brain. “That’s where the feast was, right?”

“Yeah.” Remus squeezed the stone in his hands. “Not much of it anymore.”

“I really am sorry for what happened.”

“It’s not your fault. I know I said it was, but it’s not true. Frystmark has a history with opening its borders and I was a little out of it.”

Eyes like a cornered animal, covered in grime and blood, shaking from head to toe…'a little' felt like an understatement. “A history?”

“You know how there weren’t a lot of people my age?” When Sirius nodded, he tossed the stone into the river. “There was a bad winter when I was…five? Six? I don’t remember it. Anyway, crops died all over the place from early frost and people started coming to Frystmark for help, since we’re used to the cold. We let everyone in and when winter came, there just wasn’t enough to go around. People were stealing from each other, fighting for supplies, until even the doors started going missing for firewood. By the time spring arrived, everyone who was elderly, sick, or too young had died.”

“f*ck,” Sirius said under his breath. “That explains a lot. How did you survive?”

Remus stayed quiet for so long Sirius began to regret his question. Finally, he exhaled slowly and turned to face him with a grave expression. “You need to promise me you’ll keep it a secret.”

“…okay?”

“Sirius, I—”

“There you are! We’ve been walking around for ages,” Marlene groaned as she stomped down the riverbank with a large sack and Peter on her heels. “I thought you’d run off. Hey, Remus, how’re you feeling?”

A mixture of frustration and relief battled on his face. “Better now. What’s in the bag?”

“Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, courtesy of our dearly detested dickhe*ds in the pub.”

“They bought us food?”

“In a way.” Marlene and Peter settled down on the rock and unlaced the bag, pulling out steaming hot hand pies for each of them. “Don’t worry, I got these from a bakery. I don’t trust the Kraken with sanitation as far as I can throw it.”

“With what money?”

Marlene reached out and gave Remus’ shoulder a quick squeeze. “Nobody f*cks with my friends. The bastard didn’t need it anyway, and we deserve something nice for a change. I won this money fair and square with my sword and natural charm.”

“She kicked their asses in a fight,” Peter translated around a mouthful of pie. “Ugh, these are fantastic.”

“How long is this going to last?” Sirius asked, digging through the sack.

Marlene jangled a small pouch of coins in his face. “Not as long as this will.”

“You’re amazing and I’m so glad we’re friends,” Remus mumbled as he shoveled more food into his mouth.

“You’re sure you’re okay?”

“Mhmm.”

Once they had licked their fingers clean and laid out head-to-head on the rock, listening to the river run below, Sirius allowed himself to relax. His stomach was full and he was finally warm, inside and out. “Bummer we didn’t get any information,” Remus mused.

“We did, actually,” Peter yawned. “The bakery lady said her cousin saw a spooky-looking carriage with Silval flags pass by a day or two ago.”

“What?” Sirius and Remus both scrambled to their feet, nearly sliding right into the water. “Why didn’t you say that?”

“Food was most important right then!” Peter said, sitting up. “Besides, aren’t we waiting to cross the border until the others get back?”

“No!” they shouted in unison.

Sirius ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “We agreed to get the caravan if we could and then wait for James and Lily and Dorcas before going into the city.”

“Oh.”

“Oh? Oh? Marlene, back me up here.”

Marlene stood and brushed her pants off. “Look, I want to get my parents back as much as you do, but we missed the caravan already. We’ll be found and killed if we just barge into Silvalith, and I’d rather not die without at least saying goodbye to the others.”

Sirius took a deep breath to calm himself. It didn’t work very well. “Well, then, what now?”

“Now we stick to the plan. We go to Glastam, we double-check any leads, and we try to catch up if we can. For all we know, the carriage could have been someone else’s.”

“We should start walking again,” Remus said, helping Peter up. He looked just as annoyed as Sirius felt. “The sooner we get there, the better our chances are of finding something we can work with.”

By the end of the third day, Sirius couldn’t feel his feet. The cold was the same as it had been, but after days of walking down pebbly roads and clambering over rolling hills, crashing into his makeshift bed of pine needles next to the fire had never felt so good. Remus was on first watch; a strange sense of safety came over Sirius at that thought. He slept like the dead, dreaming of nothing but swirling colors against pure blackness, until a loud snuffling sound infiltrated the blessed silence of his mind. He cracked his eyes open, preparing to grumble at Peter for snoring, only to realize the sound was coming from the woods by his head.

Oh, sh*t, he thought, carefully craning his neck to see. The fire was little more than embers by then, offering only the barest hints of light that made Marlene and Peter glow reddish orange. A massive shadow shifted in the trees, grunting and sniffing; Sirius’ stomach dropped to his toes and he squinted to find Remus.

The log he had been sitting on when they went to sleep was vacant, as was his bed. Sirius heard nothing but the normal forest sounds and the heavy breathing of a gigantic bear. Its huge feet shifted the fallen leaves as it stepped closer to their fire. Can’t beat it in a fight, he thought as his lungs constricted.Can’t outrun it. Marlene and Pete will definitely be too slow since they’ll be half-asleep.

But maybe he could buy them time. Sirius moved slowly, feeling his heartbeat pound in his ears as he reached for his sword. The mere foot between the hilt and his hand may as well have been a canyon. Here goes nothing.

Just as his fingers closed around the familiar grip, a low growl raised all the hair on the back of his neck. The bear stopped moving. Different footsteps, lighter and more deliberate, accompanied a new shadow. Sirius couldn’t tell what it was from his angle, but the shadow was smaller than the bear's—surely it wouldn’t even reach a human’s shoulder—and far less inquisitive. It growled again, snapping its teeth until the bear wandered off at a steady clip.

Great. Now we’re going to be eaten by something that can scare off a f*cking bear. Sirius closed his eyes, readying himself for the creature’s footsteps to enter their campsite, only to hear a heavy exhale and the sounds of it trotting off. Some wild beast had stumbled upon fresh meat, chased a bear off for it, and then left. Sirius decided not to read into that too much—he sent a silent thank you to whatever made it happen and went back to sleep.

The next morning was cold as ever and they packed up quickly; if they moved fast, they would make it to the outskirts of Glastam before nightfall. “Did any of you hear something odd last night?” he asked as they followed the curve of the road.

Marlene raised an eyebrow. “No, why? What did you do?”

“There was a bear at the campsite.”

“A what?” she practically shrieked. Peter went pale.

“It was really strange. I woke up when it came to the border and then something else scared it away. It was big, too, but they both left before I could get a good look.”

“This is exactly what I was afraid of,” Marlene said faintly, gripping the leather binding of her sword. “We can’t stay in the woods anymore.”

“Why not? It wasn’t interested in us.” Remus' voice had an edge to it. “We’ll be too recognizable at an inn.”

“At least we’ll be alive.”

“Remus, weren’t you on watch last night?” Peter asked. “Did you see what it was?”

He shook his head. “I didn’t hear anything. I left for about five minutes to use the bathroom, so it must have happened then.”

“New rule: no bathroom breaks while you’re on watch,” Marlene said.

“It’s a bodily function,” Remus defended. “I’d like to see you go four hours without one.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I can and I will.”

“Calm down, both of you,” Sirius said, holding his hands between them. “Look, it’s fine now. We just have to be careful about what we keep in the campsite. We can do shorter watches, too.”

The other three made various noises of agreement, but something about the way Remus avoided looking at him made Sirius’ neck prickle. He was hiding something, and Sirius was determined to figure it out.

They arrived just outside of Glastam two hours before sunset and Peter went into the outer ring of the city to ask about the caravan while the rest of them set up camp. “I hope he finds something,” Marlene muttered as she stacked dry twigs in a small ring of stones. “Earlier, I know I came off as not wanting to find our parents, but I really do.”

“Hey, no.” Remus set down the flint Dumbledore had given them with a frown. “We know you want this just as much as we do.”

“I’m sorry,” she sniffled, blinking back tears. “I just—I just didn’t want to get our hopes up over one tip when we were all so exhausted already. And after everything those idiots said to you…”

“It’s okay." He bumped her shoulder gently and she leaned into the touch. “There have been a lot of hard choices recently and it’s smart to double-check.”

“I don’t usually do smart,” she said with a wet laugh. “I’m the one that charges in with a sword and Dorcas thinks things through. Ugh, I’m sorry, it’s not fair to lose my sh*t all over you.”

“We’re friends, right? This is what friends do.”

Marlene pulled away after a final nudge and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. “Okay. Alright. It's just--”

“Guys!” Peter’s voice echoed down the road. “Guys, I know where it is!”

All three of them were on their feet in moments as Peter barreled into the camp, panting and red-faced. “What did you find?” Sirius asked, daring to hope.

“The caravan. Baker’s cousin—found her—said the carriages went—oh f*ck—” Peter slid down the nearest tree trunk and chugged some water from a canteen. “I found the baker’s cousin and she said the carriages went past Glastam just yesterday. One of the wheels looked new, like it had been replaced recently.”

“They haven’t crossed the border because they had to change a wheel.” Marlene’s face lit up, all traces of guilt gone. “We have a chance at catching them.”

Peter grinned around the lip of the flask. “What are we waiting for?”

They packed their things in record time and set off at a steady jog, securing their rucksacks and weapons as tight as they could. Sirius wasn’t much of a runner, but he could feel adrenaline trickling into his veins at the thought of finally freeing their parents and suddenly felt like he could go forever. When dusk fell, they unanimously agreed to keep moving throughout the night; the carriages had close to a two-day head start, and though they were fast on foot, it would be a close call. They took a break in the early hours when Remus and Peter both nearly collapsed from exhaustion—their watches the night before had robbed them of much-needed rest and constant travel had worn them thin.

The four of them slept until the first bits of dawn touched the sky, using their packs as pillows and piling together to share heat rather than wasting time with pine needle beds. As soon as the stars began to fade, they headed off again, taking shortcuts through fields and farms, over rivers and past deep valleys.

A full day passed like that—short naps and breaks for food or water when they grew too tired to go on, followed by a steady mix of brisk walking and jogging on their exhausted legs. Sirius couldn’t even begin to imagine prying his boots off his swollen feet and yet he couldn’t bring himself to care. The farmland gave way to rolling hills after a while, slowing their pace. But it also slowed the carriage, he thought when the burn in his thighs hit a peak and nearly tumbled him down the side. They all stank of sweat, even in the growing cold.

Adrenaline kept them going on two hours of sleep that night. Remus kept a keen eye on the horizon, adjusting course based on some metric Sirius couldn’t even bother to figure out whenever they veered off course, like a hound on the scent. Whatever it was, it gave him a smidgen of hope that they might make it.

Sometime near noon on the third day, when the sun was high and they were all soaked with sweat, Marlene cried out and pointed to the opposite hill. “There!”

A green and silver flag flapped in the distant breeze and Sirius’ heart leaped. “Come on!” They took off at a dead sprint, scrambling over boulders and slipping on the damp grasses of the hillside. He skinned both palms tripping over a hidden tree root but paid it no mind; his thoughts were too preoccupied by the thought of seeing Fleamont and Euphemia again.

Come on, come on, come on. His muscles screamed in protest and his hands stung as the crest of the hill drew closer. Please. The thought was so desperate he could taste it. A warm tan face appeared in the barred window of the carriage and a sob caught in his throat—he could see Fleamont’s face in his mind’s eye.

“—lene!” a high voice carried over the hillside and Marlene poured on speed, wind whipping her hair back as tears spilled over her reddened cheeks.

“Monty, I don’t see him!”

Sirius’ heart stopped and started in the space of an instant at that voice, the same one that had called to him as he hid in the hollow of a tree from the very people who were supposed to love him first. I know you. The carriage disappeared over the edge of the hill.

The four of them arrived less than a minute later, scanning the valley below for signs of movement.

It was empty.

“No.” Sirius went cold. “No, no, no.”

There were no wheel tracks; no flags; no carriages. Nothing but green grass in every direction. “Mum!” Remus shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth. His voice echoed over the hills. “Da!”

“Hello?” The loose wisps of Marlene's braid fluttered in the wind as she turned in a circle, grief mixing with anger on her face. “We know you’re down there!”

“Mum, Da! It’s me, I’m here!” Desperation filled Remus’ face. “I’m here, I’m—” He broke off and he wiped his wind-burned nose on his sleeve. "I'm here."

“They’re gone.” Peter sounded numb.

“No, they’re not!” Marlene yelled, rounding on him. “They’re not gone, I saw them!”

“They were right here.” Sirius's voice cracked. His head felt fuzzy and his whole face tingled. He had seen them. He had heard them calling. “They were here, I saw them right here. We were so close.”

“No.” A dry sob wrenched from Remus' chest and he kicked the nearest rock, sending it spinning down the hillside before he sat down hard and buried his face in his knees. “No, they have to be here.”

“We can’t search the whole valley,” Peter said. “There’s too much of it.”

“Yes, we can,” Sirius choked out. “We can, there’s four of us—”

“Sirius.” Peter took him by the shoulders. “Do you actually want to split up again?”

“No.”

“We're still being hunted, remember? It's too dangerous, and by the time we search everything, they’ll be gone for sure. The best thing we can do now is go to the border and meet up with the others.”

“Assuming they’re still alive,” Remus muttered.

“What did you just say?” Sirius threw Peter’s arms off him as fury reared its head. “What the f*ck did you just say?”

“I said, assuming they’re still alive,” Remus snapped. “The Wildland is a death trap, Sirius. There’s almost no chance they survived.”

“Shut your mouth, you—” No insult would do him justice. He launched himself at Remus, tackling him to the ground and struggling to land a hit. Anger and terror warred within him, mixing with the leftover frantic adrenaline to create something wild that make him shake. Strong arms closed around his chest and hauled him off Remus.

“Cut it out!” Marlene grunted as she tightened her hold.

“You never liked them!” Sirius shouted while Peter caught Remus by the collar and yanked him back. “You’re so damn lonely that you can’t bear seeing happiness in anything!”

“Dorcas is my best friend!”

“James is my brother!”

“He's not, because your family doesn't love you!”

Peter sucked in a sharp breath.

Sirius--Sirius paused. For a long, long moment, nobody spoke. Ice water drowned his ears and veins alike, muffling the world until he could only watch Remus' mouth move around an I'm sorry that rang on deafening quiet.

A slap in the face would have been kinder.

"What?" he managed. It was too weak to hold venom.

"I'm sorry." Remus' voice shook. Sirius hoped it hurt. He hoped it burned his throat and scalded his tongue and ripped his lungs. "I didn't mean it--"

“You wouldn’t have said it if you didn’t mean it.” Every muscle trembled; if not for Marlene, he would have fallen right down the hill.

“No, please.” The corner of Remus’ eye was rapidly purpling and Sirius tasted blood when he ran his tongue along his lip. “Sirius, I’m sorry.”

He was going to scream. He refused to cry. How dare you, how dare you, how dare you. Copper coated the back of his mouth; the cut on his lip pinched when he sucked on it, a bright spark of pain. He did it again, just to feel it. Blood was life was breathing was present. He was alive, and James had to be alive, because Sirius couldn't be alive if James was dead and gone a thousand leagues away. "They are my family." He would know if James was gone. The hot, fierce burn of tears turned his lips bitter. "And maybe they don't love me but they're all I have left. So don't you dare stand there and tell me they're dead."

Remus stared at him, horror written across his pale-moon face.

"Don't you dare," Sirius repeated. The leather of his hilt bit his palm where he gripped it tight.

Remus looked away first. All that, just to look away first. f*cking coward. "I'm sorry," he repeated. A pitiful apology. Bellatrix would have cut his tongue out for the impertinence; Sirius had always been the merciful one. "I didn't--if anyone can make it through the Wildland, it's them. I was angry. I'm sorry."

Peter's hold on his collar loosened. Briefly, Sirius wondered how bad Remus would be hurt if he shoved him down the hill.

"Are we done?" Marlene asked cautiously. "Because we still have a border to find, and I don't need you two killing each other before we get there."

If Sirius hadn’t been tuned to every guilty twitch and flex of Remus' face, he would have missed it. His sword was out the second Remus' eyes focused just above his left shoulder--his shout of warning wasn't even done before metal-on-metal rang through the valley and Sirius' wrists were rattling with the force of a blocked downswing. Pain ricocheted to his elbow; kick-start adrenaline turned tangy in his mouth; his knee rammed into a soft gut.

The Death Eater's gasp fell short when the edge of Sirius' blade cut across a porcelain throat. He was pivoting to catch the flat of another's short axe before the body hit the grass. Thick blood spilled over his fingers, slicking the twist of his wrist. No space for fear--only gratitude, that they were all well-versed in short-range weapons.

"How many?" Marlene called as Sirius locked his hand in the front of a coarse black cloak and wrestled the axeman to the ground.

"Four!" Peter yelped; a grunt followed. "sh*t, five!"

Flesh slid against steel. "Four," Sirius corrected.

He could hear the clash of Remus' sword somewhere behind him and stood with a groan, wiping the blood of his own blade onto the red-stained grass. If anyone was going to throw that quick-tongued f*cker over the hillside, it sure as hell wasn't going to be a Death Eater. He took a dagger from the waist-sheath of the fallen axeman and in one sharp movement, was facing Remus again as another corpse hit the ground between them. Remus stared back, sweat-damp and panting.

"Three," Sirius bit out.

Marlene wrenched the spear from a woman's hand and swung the shaft hard--it connected with a melonlike thud, snapping her head sideways fast enough to make Sirius' neck twinge in sympathy. The last Death Eater stumbled toward the hillside edge with a helpful nudge from Peter to hasten his way down.

Sirius' heel slid on the grass when he took a step back. His stomach rolled. The cloaks shrouded the worst of the damage, but the dummies he had been drilled on since childhood had never bled. It still trickled from the dagger wound in slow pulses. Sirius hadn't hurt a thing since--not since he ran. Better them than us. He blinked to clear the sparkles in the corner of his vision.

Fingertips fell on his shoulder and he flinched. Peter jumped slightly, holding his hands up as if in surrender. "Just me," he said. "You okay?"

The words were sticking somewhere deep. Yes. No. Maybe. I feel ill. Killer killer killer puppet. "Fine."

"You're not breathing."

His lungs ached on a hard exhale. Inhale. He was trying. Gods above, he was trying.

Alarm shadowed Peter's gaze. "Are you hurt? Sirius, talk to me--"

"No." It was gritty to his own ears. "No, I'm fine. We should leave."

"You're really--"

"Peter."

Marlene's hands were white and trembling where she held the bloody spear in a double grip. Remus looked like he had hardly a foot on this plane. Crimson pooled in one of the carriage wheel divots in the sod, and Sirius fought not to lose the contents of his stomach. Killer. Puppet. Coward. Too good to take the mark, but killing without pause anyway. The Death Eaters had found them in the first town, in the wilderness, and now here. The closer they grew to the carriage, the more blood would stain Sirius' hands. His palms ached with blisters. This would not be the last time, and it sat in his belly like a stone at the bottom of the sea.

Marlene had killed before, in Hemgard. Remus, too. They're not there anymore. But Peter hadn't, and Sirius, for all his years of learning how to hit-hurt-kill, had never actually dealt the final blow. "We should go," he said softly.

They made their way to the valley in silence. They left the bodies where they laid. Open plains were a danger they never should have risked.

Warm skin brushed the back of his hand as they entered the sparse treeline. Sirius' mouth filled with lead. "I'm so tired."

Remus was quiet for ten paces. "Me, too."

"Sorry I hit you."

"I deserved it."

Sirius held down a damn right. Barely, but still. Growth and maturity, and all that rot.

"I shouldn't have said that about your family."

"No, you shouldn't."

"I shouldn't have said that about James."

"He's the best of us."

In his periphery, Remus' head ducked in shame. "Yeah."

"You're forgiven." Marlene knelt at the bed of a brook ahead of them and plunged her hands in with a soft hiss. Sirius exhaled through his nose. "Don't f*ck it up."

"I won't."

He sounded earnest enough that Sirius permitted himself to give his hand a single squeeze. Just one. "How far to the border?" he called.

Marlene shrugged, scrubbing at her forearms. "No clue. Those Death Eaters did bring good news, though."

"...what?"

"It means we're getting closer."

They didn’t reach the border until the next night. Marlene made them all bathe in the winding river to get some of the blood out of their clothes, and Sirius was grateful for the brutal cold that snapped him out of the last of his shock. Nobody bothered to unpack firewood; they scarfed down the last of the pies cold and crashed hard, not even bothering to keep a watch schedule. If they died, they died, and that was the end of it.

Sirius dragged himself out of sleep an hour or two past dawn and the others followed suit soon after, groaning at their sore muscles as they stepped back onto the road. There was no true mark for the border, since the farms from Silvalith and the Middle Kingdom were so close to one another, and even their best estimates were likely to be off by a league or two. No landmarks jumped out to him; verdant fields and lazy hills filled the horizon as far as they eye could see. It would take a miracle for James, Lily, and Dorcas to find them there. They barely spoke as they slogged through the knee-high grass, caught between hesitant conversation and the silence of a leaderless blob of humanity.

“I vote we stay here for the night,” Peter said when they passed an abandoned farmhouse near the edge of evening. There was no door and one side was scorched, but it looked sturdy enough. “We’ll poke around for any news of the carriages or the others in the morning.”

“I’m in.”

“Sure.”

“Sounds good.” Sirius dropped his pack on the floor and curled up, silently hoping the wind wouldn’t blow too hard through the shattered windows. “Good night, everyone.”

“G’night.”

“Night.”

Whenever you're ready, James, we could really use a proper anchor. A chunk of stone dug into his lower back; Sirius sighed and readjusted straight onto a small pile of gravel. A fire would have been nice. An excuse to sit up without getting near the mouse-filled walls, at least, though they couldn't really afford the extra attention it could garner. He stared up through the empty windowpane as wind moaned in the rafters, clearing the darkening sky of clouds.

Cassiopeia. Orion. Ursa Major. Leo.

Sirius. Regulus. Bellatrix.

He closed his eyes. Now was not the time for those kinds of thoughts. The night breeze hushed through the grass and he could picture the gentle ripples of each swaying blade, forming an ocean just outside. Goodnight, Jamie, he thought into the black of his shuttered eyelids. Sorry I f*cked this one up.

Something rustled. Sirius was awake before he even opened his eyes.

Carefully, he picked up his sword. Marlene was already sitting up, her face grim as she pressed one finger to her lips. Remus and Peter were flanking the door and Sirius nodded to them as he slipped out into the shadows.

He moved as quietly as he could through the grass, scanning the endless grassland for any misplaced shadows or movement. On the other side of the house, the vague form of a person passed a window. Sirius’ heart hammered in his chest as he drew closer.

“Move and you die,” he threatened quietly, placing the point of his blade on their throat.

There was a creak next to his ear and something sharp brushed his neck. “You’d be dead before your first swing,” a new voice said.

Sirius paused, his arm faltering. “Dorcas? Dorcas, is that you?”

The sharp thing disappeared. “Sirius?”

“Holy sh*t!” He sheathed his sword and reached blindly in the direction of her voice, pulling her in for a tight hug. He heard Lily’s surprised laughter and dragged her over to join their embrace. “You scared the hell out of me, you two!”

“We thought you were a Death Eater!"

“Where’s James?”

“Oh, f*ck me!” Marlene shouted from inside before dissolving into laughter.

“There he is.” Sirius could practically hear Lily’s smile, but he was already running.

“Jamie!” he called, whipping around the empty doorway only to crash headfirst into a warm body.

“Sirius!” Two arms, so wonderfully familiar that he couldn’t help but grin, wrapped around his waist and nearly lifted him off the ground.

They swayed back and forth for a moment; Sirius could feel himself shaking with sheer joy. All three, he thought giddily. All three safe and sound and here. “How the hell did you find us?”

“We asked around town for a bit,” Lily said. There was a clatter and some frustrated muttering, then a spark; in a few seconds, a low fire was burning on the stone floor. Their shadows were inhumanly long on the walls, but the light was enough to make out everyone’s faces as they sat down around it, together at last.

“We all look like wrecks,” Dorcas laughed as Marlene planted herself firmly in her lap. “How much have you slept?”

“Not enough,” all four said at once.

“Same here,” James groaned, stretching so he was leaning most of his weight on Sirius’ shoulder. “What did we miss?”

“Lots of walking,” Sirius answered through his smile. “Lots and lots and lots of walking. Fought some Death Eaters.”

“Us, too.” Lily set to work braiding her long hair and picked bits of grass out of it as she went. A rosy glow covered her face as she looked around the circle. “They kept coming out of the woodwork, like termites.”

Sirius leaned back on his hands, preparing to bask in a comfortable, easy conversation, when more footsteps came from outside. The room fell silent and everyone reached for their weapons. The seven of them would be a force to be reckoned with together, but fear still swooped in his stomach. “You didn’t bring a friend, I take it?” he murmured. James shook his head.

“Who’s out there?” Lily demanded as a shadow crossed their doorway. A young man stepped into the light, his hands raised in surrender; Lily nearly dropped her axe. “Severus? What the f*ck are you doing here?”

“Do you know this guy?” Marlene asked incredulously.

“We knew each other when we were—hang on, this isn’t your house.” Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. “How long have you been following us?”

Severus rocked forward, then back again when they tensed. “I wasn’t. I saw your friends come in here and figured I’d check it out. I can help you.”

“Help us with what?” Dorcas asked warily. “Who even are you?”

His dark eyes flickered to Lily. “I can lead you through Silvalith without being seen, straight to Os Anguis.”

Hope had had many bad days before, but few came close to spending nearly two weeks crammed in a carriage with six other royals after being kidnapped from her own damn country. Silvalith’s betrayal cut deep—she and Lyall had been the last taken, bound and gagged and blindfolded despite the darkness.

But she would take being shackled a thousand more times if it meant she knew what happened to their children.

Once they were unbound, Lyall assured them all that he had seen Remus lead the others into the secret passage, away from the destroyed city and the immediate danger. Her heart ached—she had only caught a single glimpse of her son in the chaos, covered in ash as he dragged Euphemia and Fleamont’s boys away from the battle. The Silval guards refused to tell them anything and hardly came to the back of the carriage unless they were bringing water or letting them out to use the bathroom; every one of Hope’s muscles was twisted and sore from their bumpy journey, but she ran out of tears long ago.

Two weeks into the journey, the carriage sped up. King Amir and his husband shared a look—their subtle sabotage of the previous wheel should have made the guards more cautious of going fast.

“They’re gaining!” one guard barked from the front. Hope’s heart clenched. The pack must have tracked them all the way from Varghal, which meant—

“If you let those royal brats catch up, I’ll maim you myself!” his friend snarled.

She blinked. Royal brats. Not wolves. Not soldiers. Royal gods-be-damned brats. “Oh, sweet Frigga,” she said faintly as Queen Louise’s eyes went as wide as dinner plates.

“I told him to go to Glastam,” Lyall muttered, though Hope heard his breathing catch in his throat. “You don’t think—”

“They’re getting closer!” the first guard warned.

“They’ll tire if you give me the f*cking reins!”

A laugh bubbled out of Queen Annette’s throat and she stood on shaky legs until her face was right next to the small window to the cab. “If you’re talking about who I think you’re talking about, they won’t.”

The tiny door slammed open; a masked face sneered at her. “Sit down, queenie.”

Annette’s eyes glittered. “My daughter is going to tear you to pieces. How long have they been following you?”

“Three days,” the driver answered. His friend disappeared from the window and a loud smack rang out a moment later. “Ow!”

“None of your business!” the second man hissed.

“Well it’s not like four little bastards are going to do much—” The window slammed shut, muffling their conversation. Hope’s heart sank. Four? There should have been at least five. Seven, if Marlene’s squire and the Middle Kingdom girl Lyall mentioned were still with them. She closed her eyes and prayed Remus had not been left behind.

Fleamont crossed the shuddering floor and gripped the bars at the back of the carriage for support, his keen eyes scanning the hillside. Then he went very, very still. “I see them. Shore and sky, I see them.”

Seven people scrambled to his side, desperate for a glimpse. Hope strained her eyes and nearly bit her tongue as they went over a large bump—four shapes came into view, cresting the hill opposite. “Marlene!” Annette’s voice broke and she grasped the bars, pulling with all her might. “That’s her, that’s Marlene! Honey, she has Peter with her! Marlene!”

Euphemia stifled a shriek. “There’s Sirius, but where’s James? Monty, I don’t see him!”

“He won’t be far behind,” Fleamont said shakily.

“Does anyone see Dorcas?” Amir asked desperately. They all moved aside to let him and Rashid get a better view. “She’s not—where is she?”

Not James, not Dorcas, not the other girl… understanding crashed into Hope at the same time it hit her husband. “Remus,” she breathed. And there he was, just a touch taller than the others and running full tilt toward them in the blue coat she had patched for the eightieth time that autumn. She was too far away to see his face, but she could picture it clear as day.Run, she thought. Run, sweetheart, you're so close. I heard you calling, so don't you dare give up now.

Sirius stumbled and Euphemia gasped, but he regained his balance without breaking stride.

And they vanished. Eight cries went up and they pounded on the door like they had for days as the carriage began going downhill. It took a sharp turn and they all slid to the side, unable to gain traction on the wooden floor; as soon as the cab righted itself, they were back to their positions, searching for anything but the empty field.

“Mum!” That was her son. That was her son. “Da!” Lyall rested his forehead against the door and closed his eyes.

“Hello? We know you’re down there!”

“Marlene!” Louise called as tears coursed down her cheeks. “Marlene!”

“Mum, Da! It’s me, I’m here!”

“I know, sweetheart, I know!” Hope slammed her hand against the door with all her strength. It didn’t budge.

“I’m here, I’m—” Remus trailed off and Hope’s heart broke right down the middle.

“They’re gone,” a different voice said, reedier and just as horrified as the others.

“No, they’re not!” Marlene all but roared, drawing a shout from her mothers. “They’re not gone, I saw them!”

“We’re down here!” Annette shouted. But Hope knew the truth—they were below the ridge, where the wind would carry their voices straight back into the carriage. They may as well scream into a void.

“They were right there.” A high noise tore from Euphemia and she held her hands over her mouth as Fleamont pulled her close. Sirius, then. “They were here, I saw them right here. We were so—”

Their voices vanished into air, taking Hope's frantic joy with them. Amir and Rashid were sitting at the back of the carriage when she finally turned, pressed close to one another.“I’m so sorry,” she managed around the tears dammed up in her throat. “Dorcas is a smart girl. Strong. I’m sure she’s alright.”

“James wouldn’t leave Sirius,” Euphemia murmured, glassy-eyed. “He just wouldn’t. The others have to be nearby.”

Some more halfhearted reassurances were passed around, but they were all drained. She joined Annette by the door and leaned into Lyall's side as he ran his fingers through the tangled wisps that had escaped her bun. She was hungry, and tired, and was sure her heart was mere moments from falling right out of her body. “We saw him.” Lyall's chest rumbled as he spoke. “And he’s alright.”

“We will get back to him,” Hope said, feeling a fight blaze up in her bones. Their children had tracked them halfway across the continent on foot, fed by pure luck and determination—she would not make their hunt a worthless effort. “We’ll get back to all of them, even if we have to tear Os Anguis apart stone by stone. That’s a promise I’m willing to make.”

From the looks on the rest of their faces, she bet they would all agree.

Chapter 8: Under the Earth

Chapter Text

“Who’s out there?” Lily demanded as a shadow crossed their doorway. A young man stepped into the light, his hands raised in surrender; Lily nearly dropped her axe. “Severus? What the f*ck are you doing here?”

“Do you know this guy?” Marlene asked incredulously.

“We knew each other when we were—hang on, this isn’t your house.” Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. “How long have you been following us?”

Severus rocked forward, then back again when they tensed. “I wasn’t. I saw your friends come in here and figured I’d check it out. I can help you.”

“Help us with what?” Dorcas asked warily. “Who even are you?”

His dark eyes flickered to Lily. “I can lead you through Silvalith without being seen, straight to Os Anguis.”

--

“Give me, like, two seconds.” Sirius made a time-out gesture. “Who the f*ck are you? What are you doing here? How do you know Lily?”

“Severus Snape.” His nose twitched when he looked at Sirius and he did not offer his hand to shake. Rude. “I thought you were thieves, seeing as normal people don’t go skulking about at night. Lily and I are friends.”

Sirius didn’t like the way Snape said ‘friends’, though he didn’t know why. Maybe it was because he made it sound like something to be collected, or maybe it was the kicked-puppy eagerness with which he gazed at Lily. “We haven’t seen each other in years,” she said with clear discomfort.

“That wasn’t my fault!”

Marlene’s eyebrows rose. “No need to get defensive.”

“Look, Sev…” The way his face lit up at Lily’s nickname was damn near pathetic, even as she sighed heavily. “As much as we appreciate your offer, I think it would be best if we did this on our own.”

He scowled. “How else are you going to get into the city? You’d all be slaughtered before you reached the mountains.”

“Sev—”

“Besides, you’d never survive the mountains, anyway,” he continued over her. “I’m your best—”

“Oi,” Dorcas snapped. “Lily was talking.”

Snape seemed too surprised to protest, but Lily shot her a grateful look. “Sev, I don’t know how you figured out that we’re heading to Os Anguis, but it’s not something I want you to be involved in.”

“Why? Am I not good enough to be part of your little club?”

“No,” Remus said dryly; Sirius bit down a laugh and saw James do the same. “You’re not. Why do you care so much?”

“Excuse me for wanting to keep my friend safe,” he sneered.

“I think she made it clear that you two aren’t all buddy-buddy anymore,” Marlene said with a false smile. A reddish flush crept up Snape’s neck.

“She can speak for herself just fine.” Lily placed her hand on Marlene’s arm in reassurance. “Come inside, Sev, and we can have a group discussion before we freeze our asses off.”

He reeled back, scandalized. “Since when do you swear?”

Sirius snorted, but a shadow crossed Lily’s face. “I’m not fourteen anymore.”

Without waiting for his response, she turned on her heel and headed back into the farmhouse, taking a seat by the fire to warm her hands and feet. Peter settled into the spot next to her before Snape could claim it and smiled up at him, completely unruffled. “Right then, Severus, what’s your plan?”

Snape ground his teeth and took a seat next to Dorcas, who tilted her chin up and gave him a slight side-eye. “There’s a tunnel network through the mountains that farmers used for imports to Os Anguis when the roads were too snowy. It’s not active anymore, but King Riddle lets certain merchants pass through.”

“You want us to sneak into the Silval capital city using tunnels?” Sirius nearly laughed. "Do you even know how to get through?"

“I know how to get through,” Snape said disdainfully. James’ eyes flashed at his tone and Sirius grabbed his elbow quickly. A fight was not what they needed right now, not for his sake. “That’s why I’d be your guide.”

“In return for what?” Marlene narrowed her eyes. “I can tell you want something.”

Snape’s scorn flickered, replaced by fidgety anxiety. “Your support in the next election. Once Riddle is dead, my mother is going to put a bid in for the throne, and she’ll have it in the bag if your parents sponsor her.”

A heavy silence hung over the room as the offer sunk in. “Team meeting?” James suggested, getting to his feet with a slight wince. Snape rose as well. “Not you.”

Sirius didn’t miss the dark look that crossed Snape’s face as James led the rest of them out the door. “I don’t like him,” Peter murmured as soon as they were out of earshot of the cottage. “No offense, Lily, but I have an awful feeling about this.”

“None taken,” Lily said wearily. The worried crease between her eyebrows had returned full force; Sirius felt part of his soul settle, even with all the chaos. Having the three of them back felt like a puzzle piece sliding into place. “Sev is our best chance at getting into the city undetected.”

“Lils, if you’re not comfortable around him, we’ll find another way.” Dorcas squeezed her hand, but Lily shook her head.

“My comfort level doesn’t matter. We need to free your parents as soon as possible and end this war before it starts.”

“About that..." Marlene trailed off, glancing at Sirius. "We saw them."

“What?” James practically shouted. “When? Where? What happened?”

“Yesterday, when we were passing through some farmland.” He couldn’t look at James right now. He’s so disappointed in you, the little gremlin in his head cackled. He’s going to hate you for this.

“We were so close,” Remus said quietly, almost to himself.

“How close?” Dorcas demanded, voice cracking.

“A hundred meters, maybe less.” Marlene swallowed thickly. “We saw the carriage across a ridge, but it was gone by the time we got there.”

“Vanished into the thin air,” Peter finished. A small sound punched out of James’ lungs and Sirius flinched. “If they kept up that pace, they’ll be at the mountains in five days, maybe less.”

“Then we'll leave at first light,” Lily said after a moment of terrible, grief-stricken silence. Marlene led Dorcas a short distance away from the group; Remus glanced back at Sirius before following the others inside. He could feel the itch of James’ gaze on his neck, but remained rooted to the spot.

“Did they look alright?” James asked under his breath, once they were alone.

“Couldn’t see their faces clearly. I—I heard them, though, and they sounded fine.”

“What did they say?”

“They were looking for you.” Tears itched the corners of his eyes. “Your mum and dad were both there.”

“Hey.” Sirius clenched his teeth, preparing for harsh words or blame, only for James to pull him close in an embrace. They were both sniffling a little—he could feel the slight hitches of James’ chest against his own and returned the hug fiercely. "It's alright."

“I’m so sorry,” he managed. “Jamie, I’m so sorry I lost them. I swear we were going as fast as we—”

“It’s not your fault.” James stepped back to press their foreheads together, though his hands shook as they clasped Sirius’ shoulders. “It’s not your fault, Sirius. There was no way you could have caught them on foot and beat the guards. We’re stronger as a full team.”

“But they’re your parents—”

“Our parents,” James interrupted. “You’re part of the family, always have been.” Guilt shadowed his face for a moment. “I should’ve stayed with you.”

“No,” Sirius said immediately. “Lily and Dorcas needed you in the Wildland. Did you—” He paused and lowered his voice. “Did you find it?”

James nodded, inclining his head toward the silhouettes of Marlene and Dorcas. “It’s in her bag.”

“What is it?”

“Big f*ckin’ knife, thankfully,” he laughed. “I’m kind of done with magical bullsh*t.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty straightforward.” Sirius wiped away the last of his drying tears and half-smiled. “Should we go in an offer moral support before the others kill our sleezy guide?”

James snorted and draped his arm over Sirius’ shoulders. “It’s good to have you back.”

“You have no idea."

A fine layer of frost coated the ground outside when dawn came and their breath steamed in the air as they headed back toward the road; everyone kept their eyes open for Death Eaters hidden in the dense trees or behind rising hilltops. Sirius had slept like a log despite the hard-packed ground, though whether that was due to relief at having the whole group together or just sheer exhaustion, he wasn’t sure.

“She seems to have warmed up to you,” he muttered to James when Lily smiled at him after he tossed her an apple. “What’s all that about?”

A vivid flush tinted James’ light brown skin and he stepped on the back of Sirius’ shoe. “Shut up.”

“Hey!” It took him a moment to adjust the boot and hurry back to James’ side, giving him a solid nudge on the shoulder that was quickly returned.

“For the record, we talked. Quite a bit, in fact.”

“…and?”

“And I said I’d be happy as her friend.”

“Jamie!” he hissed incredulously. “Why would you do that?”

“Because it’s true!” James whispered back, casting a furtive look at Lily’s back. “As much as I like her—”

“—which is a lot—”

“As much as I like her, if she just wants to be friends, then I will gladly do so.”

“You’re such a f*cking romantic.”

“I don’t see you doing any better!”

Sirius glanced over his shoulder instinctively; by some miracle, Remus was invested in a conversation with Peter and wasn’t paying attention to them. “Could you be any louder?”

“Yes.”

“That was rhetorical, shut your face. No, I am not doing any better. We were getting somewhere before Marlene and Pete butted in, though.”

James co*cked an eyebrow. “What kind of ‘getting somewhere’?”

“Like I know his favorite color,” Sirius said, exasperated.

“Whose favorite color?”

Both of them jumped. “Yours,” Sirius blurted without thinking. f*ck.

Remus seemed rather surprised. “Oh?”

“I’m just catching Jamie up on the last week." Something strange and shivery fluttered in his gut as he searched for an excuse. "Cause, y'know, he wasn’t there.”

“I know.”

“Right.”

“Are you okay?” Remus’ eyes flickered between them. “Am I intruding?”

“Not at all!” James said brightly, slinging one arm over each of their shoulders. “Who wants to hear about the Wildland?”

“It starts with James being an idiot,” Dorcas chimed in with a sly grin.

“That’s nothing new,” Peter teased. “What was it this time?”

Lily slowed down to match their pace so they were walking in more of a clump than a line; Snape looked distinctly miffed by that fact. “The first thing he did was insult a notorious magic land, which set off an earthquake and sent a horde of gryphons after us.”

“Freaky-ass birds,” James clarified. “Big, too, with huge beaks.”

“Then we spent three days trying to not get killed by boars, rivers, and various other things.” Lily shook her head. “The days after that were also spent trying stay alive, but we were mostly on the road by then and the circ*mstances were slightly different.”

“Why were you in the Wildland in the first place?” Snape asked. The buzzing energy of their group died immediately.

“We were looking for...something,” Dorcas said carefully.

“Did you find it?”

“No. The massive metal boar was the last straw, and we left before anyone died.”

Snape's nose wrinkled. “How unfortunate.”

“How did you get back here so fast?” Marlene asked.

Dorcas’ face softened. “We stopped by Hisanon after we left the Wildland and borrowed some horses. I turned them loose earlier today so they could find their way home.”

“No horse can make that journey in under a week,” Snape scoffed.

The flinty look returned to her eyes. “The horses of my homeland are the swiftest, surest creatures alive. They carried us halfway across the continent with ease and grace, and I won’t stand for any disrespect toward them.”

Snape scowled, but said nothing more and continued to lead them down the road. Sirius wouldn’t have minded if Dorcas kept the horses around—his feet ached from nonstop travel and the steadily-freezing ground did nothing to soften their path. Then again, three horses wouldn’t help much with seven people, even if they were strong enough to carry two apiece. The tunnels would not be good places for freewheeling animals, either.

They veered off the road and into a sparse forest within the hour; everyone was soaking up as much of the rising sun as they could in preparation for many days spent underground. Suddenly and without warning, Snape stopped in an empty glade. “We’re here.”

“Where?” Peter asked, turning in a slow circle.

Snape rolled his eyes and Sirius felt a sudden protective urge flare in him. “Over there.”

A broken-down woodshed sat amongst the trees, looking somehow out of place and completely at home at the same time. If he didn’t know better, Sirius probably would have dismissed it as an abandoned woodsman’s outhouse and kept walking. The ancient door groaned as Snape pried it open, revealing a tunnel entrance that led straight into darkness; Marlene grimaced at the musty smell. “You first.”

“I think the prettiest should go first,” Snape said with a sideways look at Lily, who tensed. James went rigid, and Dorcas narrowed her eyes.

“I suppose that’s me, isn’t it?” Sirius sighed, shouldering through the group. “Budge over.”

Snape’s lip curled. “I wasn’t talking about you.”

“You said the prettiest, right?” Remus fixed him with a challenging stare. “Let him through.”

A tumbling little thrill sparkled in Sirius’ stomach and he didn’t bother hiding a grin as he dropped into the tunnel. Dorcas followed soon after, then Peter, Marlene, Lily, Remus, and James. Snape was the last to enter; he stumbled as he landed and nobody moved a muscle to help him.

Instead, they divided up the small pile of unlit torches by the entrance, shaking dirt and other unsavory things off them before adding them to their rucksacks to leave their hands free for weapons. Peter easily lit two with the flint Dumbledore had given them in his pack—as far as Sirius could remember, it had not failed them yet.

“We should go single-file,” Snape suggested at the same time James said, “we should stick together.”

Tension spiked and the hair on Sirius’ neck rose. “How about we go in pairs, since there’s eight of us?” Lily offered, glancing between the two.

“Great idea!” Marlene chirped. “I’ll walk with Sniv—Severus. Lead the way, guide!”

Snape’s scowl deepened by several degrees as he began to walk at a rapid pace—Marlene had to jog to catch up, and in the hurry to keep him in their sight, Sirius ended up shoulder-to-shoulder with Remus. “So, you think I’m pretty?” he asked without thinking. Foot, meet mouth. You’ll get along swimmingly.

Even in the low light, Sirius could see the tips of his ears and his cheeks turn pink. “You know you’re pretty.”

“Well, yeah, but it’s always nice to hear it from someone else.” Disaster averted. Thankfully, everyone else’s voices echoed off the walls in an unintelligible murmur and muffled their own conversation. “This is probably a bad time to mention I hate small spaces, isn’t it?”

Remus laughed, and the flickering flame cast shadows on his cheekbones. “Yeah, a bit. It’s okay, I don’t like them much, either. There’s never enough space to move around.”

“I’d think you would be used to that by now, since you’re so tall.”

“Really? I hadn’t noticed.” Sirius kicked him lightly on the shin and he grinned. “Come on, you’re hardly two inches shorter than I am. Why don’t you like being underground?”

Sirius scrunched his face up. “I hate feeling trapped. My parents’ house had these narrow hallways that were painted black and they always reminded me of tunnels.”

“That sounds terrible.”

“The house in Harindvar has really big windows that look out over the ocean,” he said with a shrug. “Doesn’t matter where I came from if I’ve got those now, does it?”

Remus paused, watching Sirius with an indecipherable look on his face. “No, I suppose not.”

“Back at the river, you were going to tell me something before Marlene interrupted.”

The look faded away. “I was.”

“Can you tell me now?”

“No.”

“Oh. Sorry.” Way to go, champ.

“It’s not—” Remus pressed his lips together and sighed. “I want to, but not around other people.” He cast a meaningful look at the front of the group, where Snape’s torch bobbed far ahead as he pointedly ignored Marlene. “Besides, it kind of requires a demonstration.”

Sirius wiggled his eyebrows. “Not around people? A demonstration?”

Remus glanced at him, then did a double-take. “Hell's gates, no! Get your mind out of the gutter! No, it’s nothing like that. It’s a family secret that I really shouldn’t be telling you at all, to be honest.”

“Then why are you?”

He hesitated. “Like you said, there’s a lot we don’t know about each other. This one is...pretty big.”

“Whatever it is, it won’t change my opinion of you.”

“Thanks.” His eyes flickered from amber to reddish-gold as Snape turned a corner.

“Can I guess?”

“Wh—you want to guess my terrible family secret?” Sirius nodded, and he sighed. “I’m going to regret this, but go for it.”

“You have an evil twin.”

“Not that I know of.”

“You actually enjoyed the ale at the feast.”

He pulled a face. “Not even a little bit.”

“You’ve been walking on stilts this whole time and you’re three gnomes in disguise.”

“That’s oddly specific.”

“Is that a yes?”

“Unfortunately, no.” Remus kicked his legs out slightly as he walked. “These are completely real and quite gangly.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“What’s it going to take to convince you?”

“Now whose mind is in the gutter?” Sirius teased. He hoped his flush was hidden by the low light.

Before Remus could respond, something smacked them both in the foreheads with a screech. Sirius yelped and reached up to hit it on reflex, but all he felt was the brush of something leathery as it flew past. “What the f*ck?” Remus spluttered.

“Bats!” Sirius called as Dorcas shrieked up ahead. The sound of many wings flapping filled the space ahead. “Stay low, they’re not interested in us!”

“These are echo bats!” Snape called as someone unsheathed their sword. Panic laced his tone. “They are very, very interested in us."

“Then lead us away from them!” Lily shouted. “Peter, put your sword away, there’s no room!”

Something scratched Sirius’ cheekbone and he cried out, grabbing one of the bat’s stringy legs and throwing it into the wall with a thud. The torches cast swaying shadows as they ran through the tunnels in semi-darkness; their voices were barely audible over the cacophony of high-pitched screaming and dry wings. Next to him, Remus’ expression twisted in agony as the colony’s volume grew and he fell to his knees, clamping his hands over his ears hard enough his knuckles whitened.

“Remus!” Sirius fumbled blindly until his hand closed around an arm. “We have to keep going!”

Remus' answer was too quiet for Sirius to hear more than ‘hurts’. A bat dove down and whirled between them, opening thin lines of blood on Remus’ cheek and Sirius’ forehead.

“I know, but we have to keep going or we’ll lose them!” The confusion was clear on Remus’ face, but he followed Sirius without protest, chasing the single torch that was still visible ahead.

“—go back!” James’ voice was loud as they stumbled into a side passage.

“We can’t waste any time,” Snape protested.

“We’re not leaving without them,” Marlene said angrily.

“Who are we missing?” Sirius asked, out of breath and sweaty even in the cool air. Remus leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. “Who got lost?”

Relief flooded five faces. “You,” James said. “We didn’t know where you two were.”

“Sorry.” Sirius turned back to Remus, who looked significantly less ashen than he had before. “Are you alright?”

“Better now that we’re out of there.” He frowned and reached out to brush his thumb across Sirius’ cheek; it came away bloody, and the multitude of cuts from sharp claws prickled. “You?”

“All good. Is anyone hurt?”

“Just scratched,” Lily said. She held her forearm up to show a makeshift bandage from her torn sleeve.

“Why didn’t you tell us about the bats?” James turned to Snape with fury on his face. “You clearly knew they were down here.”

“I was hoping we wouldn’t come across them,” he snapped back. “There’s a lot of dangerous things in these tunnels. Would you like an alphabetical list?”

“What are the most likely for us to run across?” Dorcas pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.

Snape shot James a final look. “Echo bats, tunnel gas, and the worms.”

“What are the last two?” Peter asked. “Is the gas toxic?”

“It causes hallucinations if you breathe too much, but it’s only fatal to the people who go running off.”

“At least worms aren’t too bad,” Marlene grumbled, though she had gone a bit pale.

“The worms can grow up to forty feet long, and they have teeth.”

“What the f*ck do they need teeth for? They’re worms!”

Snape rolled his eyes. “I’m going to get food for us. Don’t wander.”

“What’s his problem?” James muttered as soon as Snape was gone, settling down on the ground and laying his bow, arrows, and pack next to him.

“I wish I knew,” Lily said. “He’s different than before.”

“You were neighbors, right?”

“Yeah. We hung out a lot as kids, but my family moved to Bailey when I was fourteen for the mill. I don’t think he ever forgave me.”

Dorcas frowned. “For what? It wasn’t your fault.”

“He didn’t have a lot of other friends.”

“Shocking,” Peter muttered.

“He’s really sweet when you get to know him.” Lily didn’t even sound like she was convincing herself. “He visited all the time at first, but his new friends weren’t great and eventually he just stopped coming.”

Sirius heard footsteps from one of the tunnels and reached for his sword, as did the others. Snape appeared mere moments later with a leather bag under his arm and a torch in his hand, looking more waxen in the flickering light than he had in daylight. Creep.

“There’s nothing fancy, your highnesses.” Snape tossed the bag down into the center of their circle and narrowly missing the torches they had stacked for a fire. Even underground, the cold from above made Sirius’ fingers and toes numb if he stopped moving for too long.

“Better than roasted squirrels, I bet,” James said, sharing a grin with Dorcas.

Snape’s face went slightly purple as Lily laughed. “I swear, you two had the worst luck with those stupid things. How many did you catch? Three?”

“I shot three,” Dorcas corrected. “Sharpshooter over here managed a grand total of one.”

“And a few fish!” James protested. “I’m not completely useless.”

Snape scoffed, but everyone ignored him; Peter untied the drawstring and began passing around jerky. “Severus, how long will we be down here?”

“With no interruptions and following the main path, six days.” He cast James a sideways glance and Sirius bit the inside of his cheek. Killing him is a bad idea, he reminded himself. “Somehow, I think it’ll take longer than that.”

“In that case, we should eat and then get some sleep,” Peter said coolly, though some of his forced friendliness was gone. “We’ll need all our strength once we get there.”

The second day in the tunnels passed much like the first. They burned through two more torches and decided to ration them out to one per day, just in case. Every once in a while, a slithering noise would make them all freeze in their tracks as the walls trembled and rained dirt on them; Snape was fairly sure the tunnel worms weren’t carnivores, but nobody was too keen on testing that theory.

With only one torch lit at a time, Dorcas suggested tying a rope around their waists so nobody got left behind on accident. Their only rope was too short to reach everyone, so they ended up in a single-file line and held hands as Snape led the way. The next food cache was further away than the previous one and Snape once again warned them not to go poking about while he was gone.

Once they were sure he was out of earshot, a wave of tension washed out of them. “Alright, tell us what happened,” Marlene said, sighing as she untied her wrist guards and rubbed the red skin beneath. The small knives she kept in the hidden slots along her forearms had not rusted, despite the many days they spent sheathed.

“Where?” Sirius asked.

“Not you.” She playfully punched him in the shoulder. “The Wildland! We got the bare minimum earlier and I’m dying of curiosity.”

“Honestly, we kind of already told you,” Lily said with a shrug. The whetstone rang along the edge of her axe in a smooth hum. “We climbed some trees, fought some birds, ran from a boar, nearly drowned, and then found the thing.”

The rest of the group instantly burst into protests. “Come on, Lily, that’s the worst story I’ve ever heard!” Remus tossed a small pebble at her.

“Yeah, we want details,” Sirius said. “Jamie, Dorcas, what actually happened?”

“Lily tried to drown me.” Dorcas stole the whetstone and grinned, laying her spear across her lap. “After jumping off a cliff, of course.”

“There is so much to unpack there,” Peter groaned. “Both of you are terrible storytellers.”

“Alright, alright, settle down, children,” James said. “You want the real story?”

“Yes!” they chorused.

“It begins with the most desolate, deserted wasteland I’ve ever seen in my life,” he said, lowering his voice and leaning toward their miniature torch bonfire for dramatic effect. “Naturally, I pointed out this fact, and then the whole place started shaking. Dorcas had the brilliant idea to climb some trees in the forest nearby, but mere minutes after we got up there, the trees started screaming.”

“It was half an hour, and the earthquake was still happening,” Lily corrected with a smile. “Also, it was more of a rustling sound.”

“Anyway, we climbed down again and started running, which is really difficult when the ground is rolling around. We made it to a clearing and all of a sudden, hundreds—”

“—twelve at most—”

“—birds came diving down at us with these huge talons! Dorcas and I started picking them off while Lily fought the ones that came too close, but we were going to run out of arrows soon and none of us wanted to wander the Wildland without our bows. And then…” He paused, building the suspense. “…it stopped.”

“What stopped?” Marlene asked barely above a whisper.

“Everything. The ground went still. The gryphons flew away, leaving the dead ones behind. The whole forest seemed to take a deep breath. When Dorcas and I got our arrows out of the bodies, they disintegrated into moss.” James waited for a moment to let that sink in before continuing. “We did an inventory after that. Dumbledore gave us a bunch of stuff, including a broken compass and an unmarked map, so we weren’t feeling great as we set off into the forest.”

“Why would you go further into a forest full of things that were actively trying to kill you?” Remus asked.

“Because the alternative was a cracked desert, now shush.” James adjusted so he was sitting crosslegged. “We slept in a cave with crystals in all number of colors. They were like the flames in Dumbledore’s forest, but they glowed in the dark and tasted like sugar.”

“You licked them?” Dorcas interrupted, looking horrified. “James!”

“What? I was curious!”

“How did we survive?” Lily mumbled into her hands.

James rolled his eyes. “I’m getting to that part. In the morning, we decided to follow the broken compass and spent a bunch of time talking about our childhoods. Somebody—” He leveled a mock-glare on Dorcas. “—said we should keep it to one disaster per day, and then this big booming noise shook the trees.”

“Really, sweetheart?” Marlene sighed.

“Nice one, Dorky,” Remus said at the same time. Dorcas smacked both of them lightly on the backs of their heads.

“We started running right away, of course, because this massive boar came rumbling through the bushes and it had metal tusks. I thought we were going to die for sure, but Lily saw a cliff, grabbed Dorcas’ hand, and jumped right over it. Moments later, we were all in a whitewater river and tumbling downstream.”

Sirius whistled lowly. “It’s a good thing you can swim, huh?”

Dorcas and Lily both reddened. “Funny story, actually. I was the only one who could swim.” As the others turned to the girls with open mouths, James held his hands up. “I know, I know. Lily paddled to shore while I pulled Dorcas out. Thankfully, Dumbledore’s bag was waterproof, so our stuff wasn’t completely destroyed. We figured out where the thing was pretty soon after that and went to go get it.”

James gave the surrounding tunnels a significant look and Sirius nodded. It wasn’t worth telling Snape everything about their secret weapon if he happened to be eavesdropping. “It’s a good thing you went to Hisanon instead of going straight for the border,” Peter said.

“We probably wouldn’t have caught up in time if you tried walking.” Marlene laced her fingers with Dorcas’ and leaned her head on her shoulder, placing a quick kiss to the junction of her neck.

Faint footsteps made Sirius’ heart sink. He had missed spending time with just the seven of them, and Snape was the worst intruder yet. Even Minerva the cat seemed to tolerate them a bit. He saw similar disappointment on six other faces and tried to rally his optimism. “Lighten up, everyone,” he said quietly, offering a smile. “Only four more days if we’re quick.”

Across the circle, Lily smiled; next to him, Remus squeezed his hand.

The third day was going really, really well until Snape took a wrong turn. Sirius smelled something sickly sweet, like if the wood of Dumbledore’s cottage rotted; behind him, he heard James shout.

“Mama!” Marlene called, her voice breaking as she lunged for one of the side tunnels. Peter caught her around the waist and dragged her back, his eyes wide with panic. “Mama, I hear you!”

A child’s elated laughter made Sirius freeze in his tracks and he slowly turned as ice water filled his veins. There, mere feet away, was a little boy. He couldn’t have been more than eight—dark curls flopped into wide, trusting grey eyes as he stared upwards. That face had been older, angrier, the last time Sirius had seen it. The total trust in his big brother had vanished years before. “Sirius,” Regulus whined. “Come on, the cookies are going to burn.”

“No,” he choked out, stumbling against the opposite wall.

Someone was yelling in the distance; someone else was crying. Sirius couldn’t tear his eyes away from the small child who looked at him like he hung the stars. He blinked, and suddenly Regulus was taller, with lanky limbs and a sullen scowl. “Don’t go. Don’t leave me here with them.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“You’re making a mistake.”

“I didn’t have a choice.” Something hot tracked down his cheek, stinging the cut from the bat.

“You left me and I was alone. Don’t et me be alone in here, too. I’ll get lost without you.”

A breath shivered out of his lungs a Regulus began walking down a side tunnel. “Reg, wait—”

“Sirius!” Dizziness washed over him as someone’s hand clamped down on his shoulder. “Sirius, look at me!”

“No, no, he needs me.” He fought the tight hold as a voice deep inside whisperedgo to him.

“It’s not real!”

Regulus went fuzzy, leaving an empty tunnel and a wisp of smoke where he had been before refocusing stronger than ever. “I could be dead, Siri, and you wouldn’t know.”

Sirius held his hands over his ears, but the voice continued to ring. “I would know, I would know.”

“How? How could you know?” Have we always looked so similar? Seeing teenage Regulus was like looking in a mirror, if the mirror made him more angular and stripped away the love that James’ family had helped him cultivate. “Come with me. You can fix it if you come with me.”

“—ook at me! Sirius, please!” Regulus vanished again and was replaced by shimmering eyes that danced in the torchlight. Freckles decorated a scarred nose and cheeks. I know you. “Whoever you're seeing, they aren’t there.”

A faint hiss of Regulus’ voice passed his ear, but it didn’t sound right. It was a mere memory, faded by time and repression until the scornful tone was just slightly off. The mirage rested his weight on the wrong leg. Regulus was left-handed, Sirius remembered out of the blue. Like me.

Bright light blinded him and he flinched as fresh air billowed in. He cracked one eye open after a moment and saw Dorcas yanking her spear out of a brand-new hole in the ceiling, breathing hard as she strapped it to her back again. “Is everyone alright?” she asked hoarsely.

The source of the crying he had heard earlier was Marlene, who was slumped against the tunnel wall with Peter’s arm around her as silent tears coursed down her face. “Jamie,” Sirius murmured, stumbling forward.

“He’s alright, Lily’s got him.” Remus didn’t let go of his forearms, which saved him from face-planting into the dirt as his knees buckled. Sure enough, James was staring at an empty tunnel in stricken confusion as Lily held him tight around the chest despite their height difference.

“He was there,” James croaked. “Granddad, I saw him.”

“No, you didn’t.” Sirius swallowed thickly as he came back to reality. “It was a hallucination.”

“How do you know?”

“I saw him.” He sounded strangled, even to his own ears. “I saw him.”

Understanding filled James’ face and he slumped; Lily let go, but kept one arm over the small of his back just in case. “Good thinking, Dorcas,” Remus said as they rejoined the group.

Dorcas shook her head and leaned against his shoulder without a word. “We need to keep going,” Snape said.

“Shut the f*ck up,” Marlene snapped. “Give us five minutes to recover, will you?”

“Thanks to your new skylight, you’ll be a million times easier to track—”

“That’s enough, Sev,” Lily said wearily. “We’re taking a break.”

Judging by the sunlight shining through the hole in the ceiling, evening was approaching in the outside world. Sirius let the cool breeze wash over him as he slid down the wall, resting one hand on James’ arm and the other around Remus’ wrist as anchors. We could climb up right now, he thought as tiny stars began to appear. We could leave these horrible tunnels and cross the mountains and find our own way into Os Anguis. I’d rather face a hundred bears in the forest than see that again.

The rest of the day’s journey was quiet. They ate in near silence and slept with little distance between them—Sirius was not surprised by that fact, considering how much he craved solid physical contact after everything that had happened. “Did you see anyone?” he whispered when the snores began.

Remus’ shoulders tensed, then relaxed as he rolled over. “I did.”

“Can I ask who?”

“Her name is Penny. Penelope. She turned eleven last May.” The fond look on his face was replaced by sadness. “She kept saying she was lost. She looked so scared.”

“She lived in Varghal?”

Remus nodded. “I don’t know what happened to her in the raid. She has a talent for sneaking off, and I didn’t see any sign of her when I went back, but…”

“But you’re worried.”

“I am. I’m worried about all of them.” He paused. “Can I ask who you saw?”

For a moment, Sirius almost told him. But the words got stuck in his throat, and he swallowed them down once more. “I’d rather you didn’t. Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. Your business is your own.” Sirius shifted so their knees touched, and he smiled. “Night, Sirius.”

“Sweet dreams, Remus.”

The first tendrils of sleep coiled around him and he braced for dark, shadowed dreams—none came. Before he knew it, the muffled sounds of his friends waking drew him from unconsciousness. Every joint creaked as he sat up, and judging by the looks on everyone else’s faces, they were facing the same problem.

“You know what I miss? My bed,” Marlene groaned as she stretched her neck out.

Snape shot her a look from the tunnel entrance. “Sorry I couldn’t find anything better, your highness.”

“What is your problem?” Dorcas rubbed the grit from her eyes. “Ever since we got here, you’ve been nothing but rude.”

“Says you!”

“Were we supposed to blindly trust the random guy who just showed up out of nowhere after weeks of being hunted?” Peter asked with a humorless laugh. “You haven’t exactly given us a reason to, either.”

“Can we please make it two more days without killing each other?” Lily begged. “Two days, and then we’ll be out of each other’s hair.”

“Sounds great to me. The sooner you start moving, the sooner we get there.” With a hearty scowl, Snape lit a new torch and began impatiently tapping his foot as they pulled their supplies together once more. It took less than two minutes, but from the look on his face they may as well have dawdled for a year.

Even the insulated underground was chillier than the tunnels they started in. Sirius hoped that meant they were getting to the other side of the mountains, which would put them close enough to Os Anguis to end the shortcut early and leave their guide behind. They stayed in a tight group, all on high alert for any sign of bats, worms, or pockets of tunnel gas.

In fact, if they hadn’t been so attentive, they might have missed the noise.

A clattering sound made everyone stop immediately. “You idiot!” someone hissed. “They’ll hear us!”

Sirius’ blood drained to his feet at the same time adrenaline shot through every frayed nerve. f*ck. f*ck, f*ck, f*ck—“You,” he snarled, rounding on Snape, who had gone pallid.

“You’re a Death Eater, aren’t you?” Dorcas pulled her bow off her back.

“No, I—I’m not—”

“Severus.” Lily sounded wounded. “What did you do?”

“I’m not a Death Eater,” he said desperately as they all drew their weapons and closed ranks, scanning the surrounding area for movement. “They told me that if I led you into the tunnels, they’d make sure my mother was elected.”

“And you were stupid enough to believe that.” James’ voice was cold and hard as slate.

“It’s not stupid, it’s survival!”

“What else did they promise you?” Marlene demanded. When he didn’t answer, she flexed her wrist and one of her knives slid into her hand. “What else, Snivellus?”

He remained silent, but his eyes flicked to Lily for half a second. “You slimy bastard,” Remus said lowly. “You sold us out.”

“They promised they’d spare you, Lily. I had to.” He stepped toward her, only for an armory’s worth of sharp objects to center on him. “I had to.”

She shook her head. “No, you didn’t.”

Hurried footsteps filled the tunnels around them, coming from the left, right, and behind. They were surrounded, and it sounded like the Death Eaters had learned their lesson about traveling in small groups. Sirius leveled the point of his sword on the hollow of Snape's throat. “Tell us the way out.”

“They’ll kill me.”

“They’ll kill you either way, dumbass. You mother was never going to keep the throne for long. Now tell us where the exit is and we’ll let you get a head start to hide.”

“Lily—” He cut off briefly when all of them bristled. “Lily, if you come with me, I’ll call them off.”

Lily walked forward until they were face to face. For the past four days, she had made herself small around Snape, as if she was trying to be someone she had long outgrown. Now, she was the immovable force that Sirius remembered. Her jaw ticked and her green eyes flashed with fury. “I’m not your f*cking pawn, you coward.”

In a smooth motion, she raised her axe and slammed the hilt of it into his temple. Snape crumpled with a dull thud.

Marlene sheathed her knife and drew her sword, flexing her hands around the grip. “We need to get out of here before they see us.”

“Up there!” An unfamiliar voice shouted. Cold fear bolted through Sirius’ gut and all seven of them took off running with Peter’s torch leading the way. Part of him wanted to extinguish it, but he knew they would never make it without light. “You can’t run forever!”

Watch me. Somebody stumbled and he grabbed the back of their collar, steadying them without skipping a step. There was a flash of motion down a nearby tunnel and Peter took a sharp turn; Sirius came to a screeching halt as he followed them into a dead end.

“sh*t,” Dorcas cursed under her breath. “What now?”

“Follow me!” James whispered, hurrying to the end and swinging his leg over a lump. Not a lump. A carcass.

The sand worm was even bigger than Sirius had imagined and he had to jump to get over its side. It seemed to have died recently—there was no smell, and it squished slightly as he pressed his back against it. Just as Lily hauled herself over and Peter shielded the torchlight with his pack, someone entered the tunnel.

“It’s a dead end,” a low voice snarled. “Dammit, Yaxley!”

“Shut up, Lestrange, I swear I saw them!”

Lestrange swore viciously. “Well, clearly not. Now we’re f*cking lost!”

“We’re not lost! I’m not stupid, I know where the exit is.”

“Oh, yeah? Then prove it.”

Sirius turned to James, wide-eyed. “All we have to do is go back to the main path with the rocks! If you read the maps, then you’d know that.”

Rocks? Sirius wracked his brain. Yes, that seemed familiar. Snape usually stuck to paths with weathered river rocks in them; he hadn’t put together the pattern before, but it made sense that a merchant network would need some sort of guidance. Marlene gripped his forearm in silent excitement.

A shout went up a few tunnels down. “Yaxley, Lestrange, we found the kid!” a nasal voice cackled. “Got himself knocked out. How much do you want to bet his little girlfriend did it?”

The footsteps retreated—after a heartbeat of hesitation, Sirius peeked over the edge of the worm and saw an empty tunnel. “Let’s go,” he whispered, sliding over the side once more.

The search for the main path was much easier once they knew what they were looking for. They found the river rock in no time; it was cool to the touch and smooth against the rough mud of the walls. Sirius was just beginning to have hope when a pack of Death Eaters ran down a nearby corridor, forcing them all against the wall.

“Nott and Goyle are watching the exit,” the same nasal voice said. “More are on the way for backup if those stuck-up weasels try to slip past.”

Sirius let his head fall back with a thump. They had been so close. How were they always so close and never there? Soon, the area was quiet once more, save for their breathing. “We need a distraction,” Peter said under his breath. “Something to draw them away.”

They all knew it was true. They also knew someone would have to stay behind to do it. “I'll stay,” Lily and James said at the same time.

“Both of you, shut up.” Remus’ voice was soft. “I’ll distract them while you go.”

“Absolutely not,” Sirius said without hesitation.

He turned to him with a plea written all over his face. “Sirius, you trusted me in the forest, I need you to trust me here—”

“This is different!” he hissed. “Following you after a cat is one thing, but this…”

“Nobody gets left behind.” Marlene’s voice shook. “Nobody. We go out together or not at all.”

“You don’t understand, I can do this,” Remus insisted. “Dorcas, please.”

A choked-off sob escaped her. “Be careful. Promise you’ll be careful.”

“Dorcas, no,” Sirius and Marlene both said.

Remus ran a hand through his hair. “It’s—this isn’t what it looks like, you just have to trust me. I wish I could tell you more—”

“Please don’t do this.” Sirius felt tears prickling at his eyes again. “Remus, please, don’t run away again.”

“This is the only way out.”

“We’ll find another way.” Sirius’ breath caught in his throat. He couldn’t lose him again, not when he knew there was no chance Remus would survive facing off against that many Death Eaters alone. “At least let me come with you.”

Remus shook his head. Distant clanging echoed off the walls and they all inhaled sharply. “I will come back to you.”

“How can you possibly promise that?” If you go, I’ll follow. I can’t lose you again.

For a moment, the world stood still. Sirius’ pulse raced and his whole body shook with terror and grief, but his eyes were locked on warm amber that he was afraid he’d never see again.

Then Remus blew out a short breath, grabbed him by the front of the shirt, and kissed him.

It felt like coming home. Sirius cradled his face in his hands, tasting the salt of tears and the sweetness of everything he wanted, finally within reach. Remus kissed him like it was agony, like it was a blessing, like it was the end of the world.

And then they separated, and damp tunnel air filled his lungs once more; the roar of his pounding pulse in his ears returned. “That’s my promise,” Remus said against his lips before stepping back. “Now you have to go. Go!”

“I hear them!” Lestrange called, far too close for comfort.

Sirius held Remus' gaze until James’ hand closed around his arm. “Jamie—”

“I know. But we have to trust him.”

Though it felt like someone was twisting a knife in his gut, he nodded. He caught a final glimpse of Remus over his shoulder as they ran along the main path—light from many torches illuminated his silhouette before he disappeared into the shadows. Sirius covered his mouth to muffle any sound and poured on speed, calling on all his remaining energy to keep him moving even while every instinct screamed for him to turn around.

“I see one!” someone shouted, followed by a series of catcalling jeers. “Come here, you little rat!”

Silvery light flooded the tunnel up ahead. There were no guards standing watch. The evening sun and clear air were a brick to the face, but the six of them kept running, leaving the tunnels behind and aiming for the forest with all the speed they could muster. We’re safe, he thought as they crashed through the tree line.

But at what cost?

Chapter 9: Taking Stock

Chapter Text

Sirius’ knees hit the ground hard. Cold earth scraped and stung his hands, though he hardly felt it. His legs were rubber. His chest ached beyond exhaustion, beyond the burn of gasping for frozen breaths, deep and thick and agonizing.

That’s my promise.

I see one!

You have to go. Go!

Someone's arm wrapped around him. “I know." Dorcas' audible misery made his throat constrict. “I know, but we have to believe he’ll be okay.”

“He left. Again.”

“I know.”

A hard shiver wracked him. “Why can’t he just stay for once?”

She said nothing.

“We should keep going,” Peter panted. “It’s not safe to be anywhere close.”

“We’ve been running for ages.” His voice cracked and he winced. “Please, he—he won’t be able to find us if we go too much further.”

“Sirius, we can’t stay out in the open,” Lily said. “Come on, there has to be a shelter we can use somewhere around here.”

After a gentle tug from Dorcas, he stood on unsteady legs and brushed the dirt from his pants. Biting wind howled around them, signaling the oncoming winter—on the horizon, the mountains still stood tall and insurmountable.

But we’re here, he thought as the group set off once again. We’re in Silvalith and we’re still alive.

If he closed his eyes, he could feel Remus’ lips on his own, warm and soft as Sirius tried to keep him close. All those nights of longing and all those days of watching from a safe distance, and for what? To be left in the tunnels on some half-baked hope?

Sirius swallowed down the bitterness. No. He did this to protect you, not to hurt you.

The guilt was even worse than the aching loss.

They slowed their pace, walking in silence through the creaking trees and flinching at the smallest of sounds; every blade was unsheathed, each bow strung. James squinted at something up ahead and jogged forward. “Hello?”

“Shhh!” Marlene and Peter warned at the same time. He glanced around the woods, but the only thing that moved was a frightened rabbit vanishing into the underbrush.

A small hut came into view as they crested the hill—it looked sturdy, if a bit dilapidated. James crept to the door and nudged it open with his elbow before stepping inside. “Is anyone home?” He reappeared half a second later. “It’s empty. Looks like someone left in a hurry.”

“I’d rather not find out why,” Sirius muttered as he hiked up to join him.

“This is desolate,” Marlene sighed, rolling an overturned bucket back onto its base. “No firewood or anything.”

“We shouldn’t light a fire. Not tonight, at least, while they’re still on our tail.” Sirius grimaced as a large spider scuttled out of the empty window into the gathering dusk. “We can’t cook anything, either. Does anyone know about berries in this area?”

“I didn’t see any out there,” Peter said. “Just lots and lots of trees.”

At least we have some cover. Sirius ran his hands over his eyes and traced the hilt of his sword. “Right then, I’ll take first watch.”

“I’ll go with you,” Dorcas said immediately.

The sun had set when they stepped out again, but the mountains to the west were painted in deep lavender-grays that brought a burning reminder of Varghal to Sirius’ memory. Dorcas’ eyes lingered on them as they found a dry place to sit, back-to-back.

“He’ll be alright,” Sirius murmured.

“Yeah.”

“You know something about him that the rest of us don’t.”

Dorcas let out a long, slow breath. “I do.”

“I think—” Sirius pressed his lips together. “I think he was going to tell me.”

“Oh?”

“Last week, we were talking and he got all weird all of a sudden. I asked him about it in the tunnels and he said it was a family secret. He would’ve told me at the river, but Marlene interrupted.”

“Ah. She has a knack for that.” He could hear the smile in her voice.

“I’m so sorry, by the way. You two should be planning for a wedding, not…”

“Running for our lives from assassins?” she supplied. “It wasn’t scheduled until the spring, anyway. We’ve got some wiggle room to kick ass and kill a monarch.”

Sirius paused. “We’re actually going to kill him, aren’t we?”

“I think we have to.” The air turned heavy. “Sirius, I have a bad feeling about this. If we need a magical dagger to kill Riddle, he’s going to have tricks up his sleeve, and I don’t like being in the dark.”

“Expect the unexpected,” he said wryly. “He might be like Dumbledore and have a weird cat instead.”

Dorcas laughed under her breath. “I don’t know how you do that.”

“Do what?”

“Make jokes. Your family is in imminent danger, you just got kissed and ditched, and if you’re anything like me, your ass is freezing to the ground as we speak.”

“The only other option is hysterical screaming. I can give that a shot if you like?”

They both laughed at that, then faded into quiet as the night set in, clear and cold. After the stale dampness of the tunnels, Sirius welcomed every fresh breeze or wisp of cloud passing over the stars. The Lion. The Bear. The Swan. The Hunter.

Sirius. Regulus. Bellatrix.

Foxes and small rodents wandered about, accompanied by the low songs of owls and the whispering branches. Far away, something large lumbered along, but it did not come close enough to the camp for either of them to tense. There was no sign of the Death Eaters. No sign of Remus.

Sirius and Dorcas waited silently in the dark.

After an indeterminate amount of time, James and Lily came out of the cottage. “Our turn,” she whispered.

“I’m not tired,” Sirius and Dorcas said in unison.

“We need you both to be awake and ready for anything that comes by.” James tapped Sirius’ leg with his foot. “I need you both to be okay. Sleep will help.”

Dorcas didn’t budge. “I won’t be able to sleep. I’m more help here than lying awake in a cottage.”

“At least close your eyes for a bit?” Lily suggested. “Nobody is sleeping well right now, but just resting for a few minutes made me feel worlds better.”

James held his hands out to help them to their feet. “We’ll tell you if he comes back, alright?”

Sirius shared a look with Dorcas; after a moment’s hesitation, she nodded. “Alright.”

Lily was right—everyone else was awake when they entered. Dorcas went over and curled up against Marlene, who instinctively wrapped an arm around her and kissed her sweetly, murmuring something. Sirius laid down on the outside of the group, next to Peter.

“That’s you, right?” Peter pointed through the window at a bright speck in the sky. Sirius hummed. “It’s pretty cool, being named after a star. There are loads of Peters out and about.”

“None quite like you, though.” Sirius nudged him in the ribs. “I’m glad you came with us.”

“Well, it was that or death,” he said dryly. They laughed, even though the joke wasn’t all that funny. “I’m so f*cking tired of running.”

“And yet here we are.”

“I miss Remus. It feels like he’s just outside, but…he’s not.”

Sirius sighed as a pang rippled through his torso. “I miss him, too.”

“When we started this—” Peter stopped and cleared his throat. “When we started this, that first night in the passage, I promised myself that none of us would get hurt. That we would all stick together for as long as it took to get home. I’ve broken that promise so many times now.”

“When I moved in with James, I swore I would never leave his side.” Sirius scooted closer until their shoulders touched. “Look how well that turned out. That asshole went all the way to the Wildland without me.”

Peter snickered softly.

“But guess what.”

“Hmm?”

“He came back. Pete, of all the people to go on a cross-continent, death-on-your-tail, getting-ready-to-kill-a-king trek with, you managed to find six of the most stubborn f*ckers in the world. Remus is going to come back because we still have work to do, and none of us give up without a fight.”

“Has anyone told you you’re amazing at pep talks?”

“No, but they should.” Even Marlene and Dorcas snorted at that, and a weight eased off Sirius’ chest. “Get some sleep, Pete. You and Maz have the next watch.”

Sirius stared out the window until the stars blurred together and the washes of indigo and blue looked like swirling waves. He closed his eyes, picturing the sparkling teal ocean of Harindvar and the soothing crash as it met the shore. Sirius always left his bedroom windows open, no matter the season, just to hear that sound each night; he even missed the screeching seagulls.

His dreams were vague and smudged, as if someone had swiped their hand through the picture it was supposed to make. He heard snippets of voices and saw the occasional familiar color—reddish orange for Lily, deep brown for Dorcas, sea green and gold for James. Coconut and sandalwood carried on the warm breeze that blew over his face.

And someone started shouting.

Sirius sat bolt upright, already reaching for his sword as the exhaustion fled his body and Marlene sprinted for the door. “Just hang on!” James said outside. “Pete! Peter, get over here now!”

The sky was turning pink at the edges when Sirius threw the cottage door open and ran out into the frosty morning; James was dragging someone out of the woods with an arm around their waist as Lily supported their other side. Blood stained the fresh snow in their wake.

“Just hold on,” James ordered again as Peter blocked the person from view. “Remus, keep your eyes on me. You’re going to be alright.”

Remus.

Sirius’ brain shuddered to a halt and he froze. Shock painted Dorcas’ face—Marlene took her carefully by the shoulders and guided her out of the way as James finally hefted Remus into his arms. “Sirius,” Remus muttered as they passed. His eyes were unfocused and his head lolled to the side. “Sirius.”

“He’s here,” Lily said shakily, holding the door open for them. “He’s right over here, Remus, just keep talking.”

“Came back. Promised. Tell Sirius.”

That’s my promise. Now you have to go. Go!

Sirius was moving before he even registered taking a breath. Peter was cutting Remus’ shirt off him when he entered the house—blood stained the entire expanse of his torso and surrounded his mouth, smearing up onto his cheekbones and painting his neck and hands. “Get me water and some bandages,” Peter demanded, yanking the ruined fabric off his shoulders. The blood had soaked through onto his skin. “Do we have a needle and thread?”

“No.”

“If he needs stitches, we’re f*cked. Get me some water so I can see where he’s bleeding.”

“Everywhere,” Sirius whispered, though nobody seemed to hear him. “He’s bleeding everywhere.”

He walked to Remus’ side in a daze and sat heavily by his shoulder, reaching down to hold his hand; it was sticky and red. The background noise of Peter and the others turned into a muffled buzz as Remus took a shallow breath and looked at him at last. “Promised,” he mumbled through bloodstained lips, squeezing Sirius’ hand. “Came back. Promised. So sorry.”

And then he passed out.

Someone filled the dented bucket with snow while another built a small fire to melt it. They had no extra bandages, so Peter rinsed Remus’ shirt to get some of the blood off it before using it as a rag to clean his chest, neck and face—it took a few passes until the water ran pink instead of pure red.

To their collective astonishment, Remus was untouched.

Small bruises littered his ribs and arms, along with scars that had turned silver with age, but no fresh wounds marred him. Freckles, Sirius thought, trailing his thumb along Remus’ upper arm.

Peter opened and closed his mouth a couple times. “Well, that was a waste of a shirt,” he said at last. “He’s…fine.”

“He’s exhausted.” Dorcas sat down and brushed a few tawny curls off his forehead.

“I’m—I’m going to clean his sword, I think,” Marlene said faintly, picking the scabbard up with shaking hands. “It’ll rust otherwise. He’d be upset.”

“He would.”

She settled down in the corner of the room, swallowing thickly before pulling it out of the sheath. The blade was shiny as new. Dorcas winced.

“What the f*ck?” James murmured. “Did he take the time to clean it?”

“Who cares?” Sirius folded his hands over Remus’ palm, rubbing warmth into it. “He’s back and he’s alive. Does anything else matter?”

The unspoken yes itched the back of his neck, but he studiously ignored it and moved closer to Remus, keeping a tight hold on his hand. There was a small bit of blood stretching from his lip to his jaw, which Sirius wiped away with Peter’s cloth.

Sunlight tracked across the dirt floor as the morning awoke; Peter dampened his makeshift rag every half hour and placed it over Remus’ forehead while Dorcas and Sirius sat silent vigil at his sides. Wake up, he thought again and again. Wake up, wake up, wake up. We need you.

“You two should get outside,” Peter said. “The only thing we can do is wait for him to wake up.”

“Then we’ll wait,” Sirius snapped. When he looked to Dorcas for support, her shoulders slumped and she stood, pressing a chaste kiss to Remus’ wrist before walking out the door. Peter’s gaze rested on him. “I’m not going anywhere.”

He laid down when his back finally began cramping, leaving enough distance between himself and Remus to not be creepy, but remaining close enough to share his warmth. He drifted between sleep and total attentiveness until noon passed and he grew restless with nerves. “f*ck,” he muttered, sitting up and slowly taking his hand out of Remus’, who barely twitched.

“I’ll let you know if something changes,” Peter said as he all but stomped outside. There were too many emotions wreaking havoc on him at one time.

“Marlene!” She looked over and raised an eyebrow when he unsheathed his sword. “Fight me.”

“…what?”

“Fight me. You’re the best of us, I’m about to crawl out of my skin, and if we have to face a dozen Death Eaters again, I’d rather fight them myself than leave any of you behind.”

Marlene shrugged and stood, taking her own sword out and spinning it once in her hand. She darted forward without warning in a wicked upstroke that Sirius easily parried; the sound of metal on metal as they traded blows grounded his mind to his body once again and he redoubled his attacks. She smiled.

“Come on, you’re better than that!” Sirius taunted.

Marlene laughed, feinting right before twisting to the left and smacking his side with the flat of her blade. “Damn right, I am. Come on, pretty boy, let’s go!”

The melted snow underfoot made the terrain slippery, but Sirius clenched his teeth and let muscle memory take over. Regulus had always been a fan of knives in their training, while Sirius tended toward the more dramatically classic weapons. Maybe things would have turned out different if they had been able to share a common interest.

Marlene quickly pulled his attention back with a hard slap to the back of his shin. “You just lost a leg!”

“It was barely a scratch!”

“Bullsh*t.”

Sirius nearly sliced off the end of her braid and she scowled, taking one, two, three swings at him before swiping his ankles and sending him to the ground with an oof. Her knee pressed into his sternum—the edge of her blade was icy against his neck.

“He’s awake,” Peter said from the doorway, and Sirius nearly slit his own throat scrambling to his feet.

It took him barely five seconds to reach the door, leaving his sword discarded on the ground as his mind raced with a million and one things to say. Remus was sitting up when he careened into the doorframe, out of breath; his curls were all over the place and he looked groggy, but more present than before. He smiled at Sirius.

“You son of a bitch.”

The smile slid from his face like water on a bird’s wing. “What?”

“You son of a bitch. What exactly were you thinking?” Peter carefully stepped out of the line of fire. Flames roared in his ears. “Doesn’t matter that I’ve got six other people who are willing to fight by my side, oh, no, let’s go run off into the death zone instead! Holy sh*t, Remus, use your brain!”

“What?”

Sirius huffed out a furious exhale. “You have friends now.”

“Yes?”

“You have six friends who would die by your side if you asked them to, and you left us. Twice!” His throat tightened. “You don’t f*cking do that to your friends. And you know what else? You don’t kiss someone and then run off and leave them to wonder whether you’re going to keep your promise or get slaughtered in a tunnel instead.”

Remus winced. “I’m sorry.”

“Apology accepted, now get over here and kiss me again before I change my mind.” From the look on his face, Sirius may as well have smacked him between the eyes with a frying pan. “Well?”

Remus hurried to stand up, nearly tripping over the various scattered items in his rush to reach Sirius. They collided, and Sirius’ brain whited out as their lips met once again; he wrapped his arms around Remus’ waist and lifted him slightly off the ground, drawing a surprised noise from his mouth.

He pulled away and glared. “Never do that again.”

“I won’t.”

Sirius tucked his face into Remus’ neck and hugged him tight, closing his eyes to revel in the relief of a palpable heartbeat. His bare back was smooth, save for the ridges of each scar and muscle, which Sirius traced gently with his palms. He let Remus go and drew him back down for a short, slow kiss, one that he felt all the way in his toes.

“Do we get a turn, too?” James asked behind him, sounding amused and relieved at the same time. Sirius stepped aside and James gave Remus a quick hug, ruffling his hair. “You’re one lucky bastard.”

Remus laughed and Lily took James’ place, followed by Marlene, and finally Dorcas. Theirs was the longest embrace; they swayed in place for a moment. “I’m sorry,” he muttered without opening his eyes.

“I know.” She gave him one last squeeze before pulling away.

“Does anyone know where my shirt is?”

In the doorway, Peter blanched.

That night, Sirius slotted himself against Remus’ side and wrapped an arm around his chest, close enough that he could feel his pulse against his cheek. James’ overshirt was the only article of clothing that fit him, which left them both looking a little odd and half-dressed.

“I’m so glad you’re alright,” he said quietly. Peter snored on the other side of the room and they both laughed under their breath.

A light kiss pressed against the top of his head. “I made a promise, didn’t I?”

“Still. Promise me you’ll stay with me, with all of us, until this is over.”

Remus shifted onto his side and Sirius momentarily mourned the loss of contact before their noses brushed and Remus looked him in the eye, more solemn than he had seen yet. “I promise.”

Sirius leaned in and kissed him again, just because he could. They could take their time now, in the dark of the night while their friends slept properly for the first time in days. Remus caught his lower lip between his teeth and tugged it gently, making him gasp as he cupped his jaw in his hand.

“If you two even think about making out, I’ll flay you myself,” Marlene grumbled.

“Marlene!” Sirius rested his head against Remus’ collarbone and tried to quell the rising heat in his face. “Nothing was happening!”

Five different voices began protesting at once; even Peter woke up enough to add his two cents. “Alright, alright, we get it!” Remus interrupted. “I don’t remember any of you throwing a fit with Marlene and Dorcas, though.”

“We didn’t start making out in the middle of the woods in a creepy old hut!” Dorcas said indignantly. “There is a line, Remus!”

“For the last time, nothing was happening.”

“Tell that to your boyfriend, he seems to have missed the memo,” James said drily. Sirius propped himself up on his elbow and reached over to smack him on the arm. “Hey!”

“Can we please just get some sleep?” Peter yawned. “To any of the couples: please keep your hands to yourselves for the remainder of the night.”

“What about our mouths?” Marlene asked coyly, which set off a whole new chorus that only ended when Peter rolled over them and settled down in the middle.

“There. Done. Now go to sleep, all of you.”

Sirius laid his head on Remus’ chest once again and slender fingers began combing through his hair as his eyes drifted shut. He kissed the top of his ribs once, feeling the tug of drowsiness at the edge of his consciousness. Safe. I’m safe. His muscles relaxed at last, and he slept.

“I’m so bloody hungry,” was the first thing anyone said when they woke to the freezing morning.

“Cheers, Re,” Dorcas groaned as she sat up. Sirius’ stomach grumbled its agreement and he winced—the last time he ate was in the tunnels, when each of them got a handful of stale jerky and some dried fruits right before they were almost murdered. He was ready to start chewing on rocks.

“Where’s the next town?”

“Hell if I know. We don’t have much money left, anyway.”

“We have money?” James asked, incredulous. “Since when?”

“Since Marlene beat the sh*t out of a guy in a bar fight.” Sirius grinned at him and stretched.

“It was a duel, not a bar fight.” Marlene rolled her eyes, though she looked rather proud. “We have enough for two, maybe three meals for all seven of us. Four if we really stretch it.”

Lily shook her head and stood, wincing at the stiffness in her leg. “We still have to cross the mountains, and we’ll freeze to death if we keep running about in these clothes with no shelter and no supplies. I say we find a town and stock up, then keep moving.”

“Sounds good to me,” Sirius said as the rest mumbled their agreement. “What’s for breakfast?”

They had no choice but to light another small fire outside the hut; their breath steamed in the air and Sirius’ joints creaked whenever he forgot to keep bouncing on his toes. James and Dorcas disappeared for a bit and returned with a pile of dead squirrels, along with a few blunted arrows that Lily loaned her whetstone to sharpen again.

Sirius grimaced when Marlene handed him a spare knife to skin his squirrel. “Is there a particular way I should do this?”

“It’s pretty easy,” Remus said with a shrug as he sliced open the rodent, gutted it, and was soon left with the bare meat and bones. Sirius blinked. Should I throw up or kiss him?

“Right then. So I just…?”

“Down the middle, yeah.”

His first attempt was shaky at best, but eventually he was able to pop it on a stick and hold it out over the fire, copying James’ slow rotation. After about half an hour, it was cooked through, if not a bit charred. “Oh, f*ck,” he mumbled as he burned his tongue on the outside.

“Careful,” Dorcas snickered.

“Wow, thank you for such a timely warning,” he said sarcastically. She flicked a bit of charcoal at him and he punted a pebble her way; Marlene also looked a bit queasy at the thought of chowing down on a small forest creature. “How are the rest of you so calm about this?”

“This is all we ate on the way back from the Wildland,” James said around a mouthful of squirrel meat. “None of us were willing to risk accidentally poisoning ourselves with berries.”

“It’s basically rabbit,” Peter said casually. “A little chewier, though.”

Remus gave him an unimpressed look, though there was some affection in his slight smile. “Would you want to import food to a snowbound country in the dead of winter?”

“Fair point.” The meat was somehow sweet and savory at the same time. “At least it’s warm.”

“At least it’s warm,” the others agreed, holding their squirrels up in a toast before dissolving into laughter.

The squirrels, while tasty, were rather small and made for a quick meal. They were on the road less than an hour later and Sirius’ feet took great pleasure in reminding him just how much running he had done over the past few days. He kicked a rock down the path and it skipped next to James, who knocked it a few meters further. “Bet you I can hit that tree trunk,” Sirius said, tilting his chin toward a grove ahead.

James scoffed. “Bullsh*t.”

“Watch me!”

Sirius wound up for a solid kick, only for Remus to grab his shoulder and stop him in his tracks. He scanned the trees, eyes bright and alert. “Wait.”

“What is it?” Dorcas asked, pulling her spear off her back. Sirius’ fingers twitched toward his sword hilt and there was a thin grating noise as Peter drew his blade.

Something black flashed in the trees. “Death Eaters!” he shouted, pulling his blade out of the sheath just in time to knock aside a narrow knife. Ten figures erupted from the woods, charging swiftly from all directions. They were trapped.

One fell with a choked scream as James’ arrow found a home in their chest; another engaged with Marlene, sword against sword. Close combat. No bows.

“Jamie!”

“What?” He grabbed a spare arrow and stabbed it into a Death Eater’s thigh before nocking it and firing at another, who hit the deck just in time.

“Catch!” Sirius only had enough time to think f*ck, I hope this works before tossing the knife to James, who snatched it out of midair and ducked a blow from his attacker. It was a poor weapon for actual combat, but it was something.

Sirius snapped back to the present as a lithe assassin flew at him, their cloak fluttering in the breeze. “Hello, Siri,” a familiar voice hissed. His veins ran cold as she wrenched her face covering down and revealed a mad, toothy smile.

“Bellatrix.”

“Long time, no see.” She darted forward and her dagger shrieked along his sword shaft; she cackled, high and eerie. “Reggie says hello, by the way. Shame he couldn’t make it. Would’ve been nice to have a little family reunion to spill your traitor blood.”

“Stay away from him,” Sirius snarled; his vision went red at the edges as his pulse raced and he went on the offense, slashing toward her while staying just out of arm’s reach of her blade.

Bellatrix laughed again and a gleam lit in her eye. She was just playing, now. “But he’s so much more fun! Much less dull than you were, that’s for sure.” His sword skidded off the front of her chest and she bared her teeth at the scratch it left on the black leather chestplate. “Watch yourself. Someone could get hurt.”

“I’m counting on it.” The sounds of battle continued around them, but he kept his focus firmly on Bellatrix’s dagger as they locked in a deadly dance. Any distraction would certainly be fatal. It had been too long since he dueled her.

Someone shouted behind him and metal clattered on the stones. “Remus!” James' voice cracked in panic.

Sirius flinched on reflex; in half a second, he was on the ground with Bellatrix hovering over him and only just managed to halt her viper-like stab with the flat of his blade. Two black-clad bodies laid on the ground, though he couldn’t tell if they were dead or alive—his arm ached with the effort of holding Bellatrix at bay. The quivering tip of her dagger slit a fine line over his cheekbone and he jerked reflexively, only for both legs to be pinned under knees like sharpened pikes.

Three Death Eaters advanced on Remus. His sword laid far out of reach and he slowly backed away, gaze flickering between them. “Remus—” Sirius’ breath caught when the motion slid Bellatrix’s dagger down again. Blood trickled toward his ear.

“Who’s that?" she hissed gleefully. "Your boyfriend?” Her grin grew broad and wild when he failed to respond. “Oh, little cousin, you are a fool. I was going to kill you anyway, but it’ll be so much more fun if he’s alive to see it. Hey, pup, over here!”

“Sirius, no!” But James couldn't reach him, too preoccupied with his unbreakable headlock on a slowly-fading Death Eater. Sirius' lip curled into a snarl, but he didn't dare twitch. Sunlight glimmered on steel too close for comfort.

Lily took a step--Sirius groaned as the pressure on his battered body increased. "Come close and I kill him now," Bellatrix said lowly, digging her nails into his jaw. "And believe me, peasant, it will be slow."

“Help Remus,” Sirius panted. Lily's eyes darted between them, stark jade against the red flush of her face; her knuckles were white on the handle of her axe. He twisted to bite at Bellatrix's hand and just barely managed to keep his sword up to block her swift parry. “Help him!”

Bellatrix giggled and turned her head; her long curls, once shiny and royalty-perfect, slid across Sirius’ neck like a snake. His skin crawled. Bile crept up in his throat. “Didn’t you learn your lesson when we visited your hut, little pup?” she sneered, dragging the edge of her knife down Sirius’ cheek until a cry slipped through his clenched teeth. “You might have fooled the others into fearing you, but we both know the truth. What's one meat-sack princeling against an army?"

Remus looked to her with utter calm--no, not calm. Exasperation, edging on disappointment. As if Bellatrix had just failed the most simple of tests. He turned back to the Death Eaters creeping toward him and held his hands up. It would have looked like surrender if not for the smile playing at his lips. "All that planning," he said, far too measured for someone at the business end of too many weapons. "All that blood. And not one of you wondered why my city is called the wolf's den?"

They never had the chance to scream. Tan and white exploded into existence where Remus had once stood; Sirius couldn't help his slack jaw at the harsh snap-crack of teeth meeting skull, nor the dull thud of a body hitting the ground. The second man didn't speak. Apparently, words were hard to find with a direwolf standing on one's throat.

The wolf launched itself forward and sank its teeth into the third man's arm with a feral sort of noise. One bone-breaking shake later and the man was scrambling away like an insect from a bonfire, silent and shivering, until he collapsed against a boulder and went still. The last assassin fled in a burst of black wool.

Bellatrix howled. "RETURN TO ME!"

And the wolf turned to her. Its golden eyes lingered on her face in an unblinking stare. The blood of her companions dripped from its bared fangs onto the dusty road and Sirius swore for a moment, just for a breath, she shuddered. The wolf's hackles rose as it growled from some place in the deep beyond. The direwolves of Varghal had not frightened Sirius--but then, he had never been in the path of their prey.

The pressure on his chest lifted and yet he could not take in a breath, even when the icy cold of Bellatrix's dagger was replaced by the sting of a fresh wound. She was not permitted the luxury of standing before the wolf lunged for her and sent her sprinting for the cover of trees like a bird in flight.

The path was silent as Sirius stood and promptly fell on his ass again. he couldn't recall the last time he had knees. "I'm--you--" he managed. The world spun in a hurricane of speckling black. "Remus."

The wolf had the nerve to look guilty. It sat, licked its lips once, and lowered its head with and uncomfortable sort of shift. And then there was Remus, crosslegged. Bloodstained. He coughed. "Sorry 'bout that."

“Remus,” Sirius spluttered again.

“Do you have something to share with the class?” James asked faintly. Lily may as well have been an utterly befuddled statue.

“I was going to tell you—”

“What?” Marlene interrupted. “You were going to tell us what? That you turn into a giant dog every once in a while and start ripping people's arms off?”

“I didn’t rip anyone’s arms off,” Remus defended. “It was a mild bite at worst.” The man on the ground moaned in pain and he winced. “A…moderate bite.”

“You have a little…” Sirius motioned toward his own mouth and Remus quickly wiped at it with his sleeve, which only smeared the blood more. “Nevermind. You broke into my room.”

“I did not! You let me in!”

“It was the middle of the night! You slept in my bed!”

“I left as soon as you fell asleep!”

“What the f*ck are you two talking about?” Peter asked, clearly on the verge of tears.

“And Dorcas, you knew!” She had the decency to flush when Sirius pointed an accusatory finger her way. “You knew and you didn’t tell me!”

“It wasn’t my secret to tell!”

“This is how you survived, isn’t it?” Lily picked up Remus’ sword and handed it to him. “In the tunnels. That’s why you wanted us to leave, and why your sword was still clean.”

He grimaced. “I’m not supposed to tell anyone.”

“Can everyone in Frystmark do that?”

“Some. They usually become warriors.” His eyes turned sad and he fiddled with the cuff of his coat. “My mum can do it.”

The memory of Queen Hope at the banquet, elegant and slender as she pulled Remus away, rose unbidden to Sirius’ mind. “But she was in the carriage. Why didn’t she run?”

Remus shook his head. “She wouldn’t leave my Da like that.”

“Did you think we would tell people?” James asked. “Is that why you kept it a secret?”

“I wasn’t sure.” He picked at the cuff of his pants. “It’s—look, nobody knows. They think the wolves are born and bred like warhorses or livestock. If people found out we were vulnerable, Frystmark would have an even bigger target on its head. I didn’t know any of you well enough to reveal a secret that’s been kept for centuries, and once we were actually friends I…kind of felt like it was too late.”

“We still like you,” Peter said. Remus’ shoulders slumped a bit. “Remus, you’re still our friend. Yeah, we’re surprised, but you did just shapeshift into a massive f*ck-off wolf so I hope you can cut us some slack.”

They all laughed a bit at that, and the side of Remus’ mouth tugged up. One of the unconscious Death Eaters twitched and the light humor evaporated in an instant. “We should get moving,” Dorcas said. “I don’t want to be here when they get up.”

The closest village sat atop a small hill in the distance—Sirius could just make out the rooftops if he squinted. They gathered their supplies, took any spare weapons from the assassins, and began to walk once more.

“This doesn’t change anything,” Sirius said, bumping Remus’ shoulder with his own. “I still think you’re wonderful. If anything, this adds an extra badass edge.”

Remus huffed a laugh and turned to him, only to frown in concern. “You’re hurt.”

“What? Oh, right.” In the chaos, he had nearly forgotten the burn of Bellatrix’s dagger. “It’s nothing, just a scratch.”

“Here.” Remus paused for a moment and dampened his sleeve with his canteen, gently cleaning the edges of the wound; his hands were warm and steady, but Sirius dodged out of the way when he leaned in for a kiss. Hurt flashed over his face.

“As much as I want to do that right now, you’ve got blood all over your mouth.”

“What? Oh! Oh, sorry about that.” Remus quickly scrubbed at his lips with the damp fabric as they jogged to catch up with the rest of the group. Sirius twined their fingers together and leaned up to kiss his cheek when they slowed down, grinning at the faint blush it brought beneath Remus’ freckles.

“Cute.”

“Yeah, you are.”

“Oh, that was smooth,” he laughed. “What else are you hiding under all those layers of grumpiness?”

Remus smirked. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Sirius’ jaw fell open and Dorcas reached back for a high-five, which Remus happily obliged. As they walked, he began noticing little changes—Remus’ shoulders were more relaxed and he was calmer than before, smiling easily at James’ terrible jokes and leaning into Sirius every once in a while. He seemed…settled.

“What are you smiling at?” Remus asked as they approached the outer wall of the village.

“You.”

The flush spread to his ears, but he didn’t look away, squeezing Sirius’ hand as the gates opened ahead. “Ah, the honeymoon phase.” Marlene sighed and wound her arm around Dorcas’ waist. “Remember when we were gross and romantic?”

Dorcas snorted. “We never stopped.”

“Hmm, true.” She stood on her tiptoes to kiss the edge of Dorcas’ jaw.

Several people stopped to stare at them as they wandered down the bustling main street, and Sirius was struck by the sudden thought that they probably should have washed the streaks of blood off their clothes before entering a populated area. He waved awkwardly to a few of them and the group moved into a tighter clump under the lingering looks.

“Does anyone else have a bad feeling?” Lily muttered when they passed a tavern and most of the chatter went quiet.

“Mhmm.” Peter scanned the alleys, his muscles tense. “Let’s not stay the night here, yeah?”

Murmured agreement rippled through them. “We should split into groups so it goes faster,” Dorcas suggested. “We need clothes, supplies, and food, right? That makes two groups of two and one of three.”

“I don’t like splitting up, but I don’t like this place, either,” James sighed, running a hand through his hair. “We’ll meet here when everyone is done. If you have a problem…”

“If we have a problem, we’ll cause enough of a ruckus to send the whole town up,” Sirius said as Marlene began dividing their last coins. “I’ll track down winter clothes.”

“I’ll go with you,” Remus volunteered. Marlene and Dorcas went off to find supplies, and the others disappeared into the marketplace mere moments later.

“Is this a date?” Sirius teased as they walked hand-in-hand down the street.

“Do you want it to be?”

Sirius actually laughed at that, jostling Remus gently with his shoulder. “Take a wild guess. Oh, that looks promising.”

The shop smelled musty even from ten feet away and both of them grimaced as the mothball-and-chamomile cloud enveloped them. A tiny old woman in a quilted vest sat behind the counter, watching the shop like a hawk as she knitted something lumpy and vaguely hatlike. Racks upon racks of sweaters, boots, and coats lined the walls—all were too expensive for their meager budget.

“Excuse me?” Remus walked over and she gave him a suspicious look. “Hello. We don’t have much money, but we need winter clothes for a large group.”

“Why?”

Remus paused, and Sirius heaved an internal sigh. “Our village was burned in a border dispute,” he lied easily, stepping forward. “We lost everything, and we’re going to Os Anguis to seek help from the king. The mountains won’t be easy to pass without something to keep us warm.”

Something softened in her flinty eyes. “I’m afraid the king won’t be much help, dear,” she said, patting his hand. “My nephew Benjy was killed by Tidorans coming north and Riddle didn’t do a thing to help us. How much do you have?”

The small pile of coins looked downright pathetic when Remus poured them onto the desk. “We can probably find some more,” Sirius said hastily at her clear hesitation. “Our friends are getting food and blankets but—”

“No. No, this will be fine. How many people are in your group?”

“That was…surprising,” Remus murmured as they left the shop half an hour later, each carting a leather bag of clothes. They were far from high-quality, and ‘secondhand’ was a fool’s hope for how many different bodies they had seen, but at least they weren’t rags. “I thought she was going to boot us out as soon as we showed her how much money we had.”

“Uh-oh.”

“What? What’s uh-oh?” Sirius wove through the crowd toward their meeting place, keeping a tight hold on Remus’ hand. “Sirius!”

“We need to go,” James said under his breath when they arrived. His eyes were stormy, and Peter kept peering around.

“There they are,” Peter whispered suddenly. Sirius followed his sightline and saw Marlene’s golden curls among the throngs of people, hurrying over to them with blankets tucked under her arm. “Come on.”

Her face was drawn and nervous as they approached. “Guys, we have to go right now—”

“We know,” Lily said, already making her way to the back gate. “We saw.”

“Would anyone care to tell us what’s going on?” Remus asked as he hoisted his pack up further. He and Dorcas seemed to be struggling to push past the pedestrians as easily as Peter and Lily. Wordlessly, James reached back and pressed a paper into Sirius’ hand. He nearly fell over when he saw the writing.

Wanted for the crimes of murder, assault, theft, trespassing, and attempted treason:

Prince Remus of Frystmark

Lady Dorcas of Marajis

Princess Marlene of Tidoras

Squire Peter of Tidoras

Representative James of the Eastern Coast

Sirius Black, their companion (runaway)

Lily Evans, their companion

If seen, alert the nearest guard station. They are armed and dangerous.

“Lily, they know your name.” Cold ice ran down his spine as they picked up the pace. They know my name. They know my name. sh*t, sh*t, sh*t.

His own face stared back at him from among seven portraits, clearly drawn by someone who had not seen him in years and made their best guess at how he would look now. There was a haughty tilt to his chin and a sneer on his face—Sirius felt sick. He wondered which family picture had been turned over to make this.

“That woman in the shop…” Remus frowned and glanced over his shoulder. “She must have known. Why did she help us?”

“Good question, let’s debate it on the road,” Dorcas said, hiking the straps of the small tent up as they walked through the gate. Sirius kept his eyes steadily on the mountain range ahead, but he didn’t take a deep breath until they reached the well-worn road and trees lined either side. “I think we should stay off the path from now on.”

“I second that.” James cast a final furtive glance around before stepping into the woods. “Did everyone get what we needed?”

“Should be enough,” Sirius said, giving his bag a light pat.

“The tent was expensive, so the blankets aren’t the best, but they’ll work.”

“We don’t have much food other than bread, jerky, and dried things.” Lily shook her pack and it rattled. “But it would be a bad idea if we brought things that would rot. Any news on that secret pass?”

“None. We’ll have to cross them like we planned.” Dorcas sighed. “I really hate being cold.”

Behind them, the sounds of the village began to fade as they walked deeper into the forest; ahead, the mountains stood as the final obstacle between them and Os Anguis.

Chapter 10: Enemy At the Gates

Chapter Text

Sirius couldn’t feel his feet. Or his ankles. Or anything from his knees down, really. The wind screamed around the cliffs above them and he pulled Peter close, tucking their blanket tighter. Peter sobbed into his shoulder and Sirius wasn't far behind—what hadn't already gone numb burned with pain as their blood desperately tried to circulate.

“Dorcas? Dorcas!” Marlene’s frantic voice was nearly lost in the noise and Sirius pried his eyes open, blinking away the fine ice crystals that had begun forming as tears gathered at their corners. The direwolf nudged the bundle of blankets with his nose and he saw the lump move; Marlene made a high sound of relief.

Remus had been a wolf for days, pushing through the snow and acting as the main heat source to keep James and Dorcas from freezing to death. Neither of them had any experience with cold weather, and certainly not the blinding blizzards of the mountain. It was a miracle nobody had fallen ill yet. Every day, Sirius regretted entering the pass, but they couldn’t go back. Each step took them closer to Os Anguis and their parents; as long as they stayed low, they could make it through. They had survived thus far because they never stopped fighting. A little more wouldn't kill them.

Snow tumbled down overhead and he winced at the few flakes that slashed at his face. On his other side, Lily’s continuous shivering grew worse. “Lily!” he shouted, trying to be heard over the constant howling. “Lily, are you alright?”

Her face crumpled and she tucked it further into the neck of her coat; he felt her shaking against him and pressed their foreheads together.

“You’ll be okay.” His voice cracked and he winced. “Lily, we’re all going to be okay.”

“I can’t feel my arms,” she wept, though it was too cold to waste tears. “I can’t—I can’t feel anything.”

“Just hold on.” Just hold on. Just a little longer. We’ll be there soon.

In all honesty, Sirius didn’t know how long they had been in the mountains. Though they skirted the base as best they could, the clear blue sky had been devoured by thick grey clouds that poured an endless waterfall of snow and ice over them. They had walked until his blisters grew blisters, then rubbed raw, then went to a place beyond pain. He dreaded the agony that would come when they reached the other side and he regained feeling.

On their third night—maybe fourth, maybe fifth—there had been a break in the blizzards. Remus turned back into his human form and curled up in the tiny tent with them, latching on to Sirius with an unbreakable grip as he shuddered with exhaustion and cold. They were all rattled from James’ brush with death that day, when he nearly fell into a crevasse so deep no light shone on the sides.

The moon rose, full and round. They sat in the tent and stared at the sky in all of its radiant glory, pressed so close to one another that Sirius couldn’t tell whose body was whose anymore. Constellations danced through the distant peaks and they took turns telling their legends. Sirius knew the most, so he talked until his throat was sore.

That's when the ribbons began. Green, purple, the most vivid blue any of them had ever seen—all of it was there, weaving back and forth in slow ripples like fire. Remus’ breath caught and he grabbed Sirius’ hand as the light reflected off his face. “It looks like home,” he managed, his voice thick. “It looks like home.”

Another gust sheared off the peaks high above and Sirius was yanked back to reality by the harsh stinging on the smallest slivers of his exposed skin. The three of them pressed back against the outcropping of rock they had found; it was too stormy to set up their tent without risking the banshee-wails of wind shredding it, and too dangerous to try and travel. They would have to wait until the sky calmed before moving on.

“—us! Lil—” Snippets of Marlene’s plea slipped through the shrieking and Sirius squinted at her as she waded through the blizzard toward them, collapsing into the huddle of their blankets. “The wind is changing. Remus is going to move closer.”

Her words were slurred around numb lips, but the three of them nodded and relief washed over her face. “Do you need help?” Lily asked. Marlene shook her head and walked back to the wolf. Sirius couldn’t see much around the sheet of gray and white that filled his vision as a wind tunnel rushed past them; the next thing he knew, Marlene was helping guide James into the space between him and Lily.

“James, can you hear me?” He shivered and struggled to keep his eyes open. His lips were dark purple and the warm tones of his brown skin had dulled. Fear leapt in Sirius’ throat. “Stay awake, Jamie. I’ve got you.”

He dragged the edges of the blanket up to their shoulders, keeping a tight arm around Peter; Lily wrapped herself around James’ side to conserve warmth and held Sirius’ frozen fingers in a weak grip. Dorcas looked even worse off than the rest of them, with drowsy eyes and staggering steps.

Remus lumbered over and placed himself between their group and the sideways snow to form a low, makeshift wall. Sirius clumsily reached out to grab the nearest hunk of fur by his ruff. “Remus, no, you’ll freeze.”

A warm breath fogged over his hand and the wolf blinked slowly at him; it huffed again and pushed them all closer, shutting its eyes as a sharp gust buffeted the mountainside. Marlene shook her head. “I tried. He wouldn’t listen.”

Sirius didn’t have the strength to argue. He kept one hand on Remus’ neck and the other around James, resting his head on Peter’s temple and tangling his leg with Marlene’s as she held Dorcas. And he slept.

The first thing Sirius noticed when he opened his eyes was light. The blistering snow had settled, blockading them in their small hideout. James was limp against him, but his breaths were finally steady—Dorcas was alert and staring around in wonder. Thank you, he thought with every scrap of force he could muster. Thank you.

He slid his hand through the direwolf’s fur and onto its head, stroking one pointy ear. Remus opened his eyes and leaned into Sirius’ touch. “Is it safe to walk?” Peter asked, his voice hoarse. “Can we even get out of here?”

Their coats were magnificently dry despite the thin crust of ice. The boots from the little village were just a bit too small, but at least they kept the damp out of his thick socks. Thank you, he thought once again. The wolf uncurled himself with a low groan and a veritable bank of snow sloughed off his side, making all of them wince. Sirius’ knees screamed in protest and every joint popped, but the hint of warmth was worth every ache as he stepped out into the dazzling sunlight. “Let’s cover as much ground as we can before that blizzard comes back.”

Lily picked chunks of frozen snow out of her braid and grimaced. “Is there any way we can drop down a bit? It’ll take longer, but it might be warmer.”

He peered over the edge of the cliff. “Maybe?”

James joined him at the edge and frowned. “Not here, that’s for sure.”

“Let’s at least keep walking,” Dorcas suggested as she blew hot air into her hands. “Waiting around isn’t going to do anything.”

Trudging through snow was incredibly difficult—Sirius had discovered that on the first day, when they covered less than half the distance they would have on a normal road. They had made a silent agreement to ration their food after that. It would still barely be enough to get them to the other side of the range, if they were lucky.

If not for the constant light up above, Sirius would have thought they walked for days. Some feeling returned to his legs, though it was a horrific combination of scalding tingles and the soreness that came from working every muscle in his body. Just as I thought I was getting stronger, he grumbled internally.

“Food break,” Peter finally panted as they crested another ridge. Sirius sighed in relief and sat heavily on a nearby rock.

Something cracked.

He froze.

The rock gave way, and then there was nothing but air below him.

He didn’t even have time to shout before the direwolf and James were both lunging for him; one cold hand locked around his wrist and another grabbed the back of his coat collar as the rock shattered a hundred feet below. He wasn’t even breathing as the two of them hauled him to solid ground and dragged themselves to safety with the rest of the group.

“Sirius. Sirius, look at me.” Someone’s palms were on his face, but he was shaking too hard to tell whose. Everyone was too close, too crowded in his vision. “Pete, hand me that blanket.”

Weight draped around his shoulders and he grabbed the sleeve of James' shirt with a trembling hand. His muscles had turned to stone. “Holy f*ck.”

“Shhh, it’s okay.”

Lily rubbed his upper arm and pushed some jerky into his palm. “Eat. Take some deep breaths. You're alright.”

There was a gentle squeeze on his wrist and his eyes flickered to Remus, who was pink-cheeked and disheveled in the cold. “Hey, you.”

“Thanks,” he croaked as his heart stuttered back to a semi-normal rhythm. The pure shot of adrenaline was beginning to fade already; the edge of the cliff watched him like a hungry wolf pack.

“Just returning the favor.”

“Nice face.” His hand still shook uncontrollably, but he managed to bring the jerky to his mouth and gnaw on it while Remus cuddled into his ribs. James sandwiched him on his other side, and he finally took a deep breath. “It’s—it’s nice to see your face.”

“f*cking cold is what it is,” Remus half-laughed with a wince and a shiver. He had loaned his thick fur-lined coat to Peter early in the journey; Sirius wrapped an arm around him and rested their temples together to conserve body heat. “Thanks.”

“ ‘s no different than what you’ve been doing the past few days for us.”

“Speaking of, I think you should take a break,” Marlene said as she passed the jerky around to everyone else. “We’ll set the tent up and then you should take a nap.”

“I’m fine,” Remus said, even as he leaned closer to Sirius and stifled a yawn. “Lily, you said you wanted to move near the base?”

Lily squinted up at the sky, which was rapidly purpling under the clouds. “I don’t want to get caught out here at night. Let’s find another rock shelf to block the wind.”

“When we get down from here, I’m finding hot chocolate,” James sighed as he pushed himself upright and dusted the snow from his pants. “I’m finding a huge mug of hot chocolate and not sharing it with any of you. And then I’m going to sleep for four days straight.”

“Can I join you?” Sirius asked, cracking a smile. He pressed a kiss to Remus’ curls—the fact that he could do that still gave him butterflies—and wobbled to his feet. Time to go. Up, up, up, don’t lag behind.

They set up the tent quickly, falling into the routine they had created over the past six (seven? Eight?) days in the snow. James and Dorcas were always the first in, despite their initial protests; the climate adjustment had been hardest on them, and none of the others were willing to risk giving them frostbite for the sake of an extra two minutes’ work. Sirius narrowed his eyes at Marlene as she gestured for him to enter before her.

“You first.”

“No, after you.”

“L—”

“If you say ladies first, I’m removing your kneecaps.”

“L…longswords first.”

“Will you self-sacrificing idiots please stop letting the cold in?” Peter groaned.

Dorcas lifted the edge of her blanket. “Sweetheart, I need cuddles.”

Marlene practically shoved Sirius into the snow in her haste to wrap her fiancée in her arms; Sirius tied the tent closed behind them and spooned up along Remus’ front. “Much better.”

“Mhmm.” Warm lips brushed the back of his neck and he smiled, rubbing his face against Remus’ bicep with a hum. “Who’s the dog here, again?”

“I’d be the cutest dog you’ve ever seen,” Sirius murmured as he closed his eyes. Warmth seeped into his bones, though the tent walls shuddered in the wind as night fell and their breath steamed, creating small drops of condensation on the fabric. Traveling through mountains was inconvenient for many reasons, not the least of which being the inability to make progress when the sun was down—this late in the year, they barely got a few consistent hours.

Sirius didn’t dream, but he did sleep for almost the whole night. There was no need for a watch cycle, unless the Death Eaters were even crazier than he thought. Everyone was safely in reach and not in imminent danger of freezing to death; he could relax a bit and bask in Remus' solid presence.

Sirius saw him differently, now. Instead of an adorably stuffy prince he could dance with at a party and maybe entice into a few stolen kisses, Remus was a fierce friend that he couldn’t imagine leaving. It was a different kind of affection than he had for James; a different kind of love. If they all survived this quest, he knew he would never want to leave Remus’ side again. That thought both terrified and thrilled him. It seemed too early to fall that hard and fast, though he couldn’t help the kick of his heart whenever Remus was near.

They awoke in turns; after more than a month of 24-hour contact, Sirius could tell who was up just by their breathing patterns. Remus mumbled incoherently and pulled him closer, giving his shoulder a nuzzle before kissing it gently. “G’morning.”

“Morning.”

“Anyone up yet?”

Over Remus’ shoulder, Dorcas was playing with Marlene’s hair, and Lily watched James with a strange expression on her face; Peter shifted in his sleep, then stretched and cracked an eye open. “Just about everyone.”

“It sounds calmer outside,” Lily said. Sirius flicked the nearest wall and heard snow shift down—Remus sighed.

“I’ll clear a path.”

“No,” Sirius protested, dragging him back down. “We can stay until Marlene and Jamie are up.”

“ ‘m up,” James mumbled. “Don’t wanna be, but I am.”

“Shut up, I’m trying to get snuggled.” Laughter rippled through them and Sirius smiled, turning to tuck his head under Remus’ chin.

“How long were we out?” Peter asked around a yawn.

“A while. Nobody slept much during the blizzard.” Dorcas kissed Marlene’s forehead and let her lips linger. “Time to get up, my love.”

“Stay,” Marlene murmured, tugging on the front of her coat. “More cuddles.”

“If Lily’s plan works, we’ll be warmer tonight. We really should get moving.”

Marlene sighed, but sat up kissed her cheek all the same. “If I must.”

When they got back home, Sirius was going to buy Lily the biggest fruit basket he could find. The base of the mountains left them more exposed and added a day or two to their travel time, but the sun’s rays cut through the cloudcover and—most importantly—it was warm. At least, warmer than a few hundred feet higher, where a thick ring of fog blocked all but the peak from view. They could set up their tent every evening without worrying that high winds would shear through it, and on the second day, Sirius was even able to peel off his outer layers.

The lower elevation made it easier to track time, as well—losing that sense had been beyond disorienting. They spent three full days walking through frosty brush and valleys pockmarked with boulders before high towers rose in the distance.

“Look,” Dorcas breathed. Her whole face split into a beaming smile. “Look!”

“Os Anguis.” Awe filled James’ voice.

“We’re so close.” Peter sounded a little choked up and Sirius reached over to muss his hair as his own heart began to pound. “That’s, what, three days from here?”

“Two, if we haul ass.” A deliriously happy grin spread over Remus’ face and he kissed the top of Dorcas’ head, then cupped Sirius’ face and planted a proper knee-melting one on his lips.

“We need to leave the mountains more often,” Sirius panted when they broke apart.

Marlene, who had been staring at the towers in total shock, let out a happy whoop and practically launched herself into Dorcas’ arms. “We can see it!”

“And we can see something even better.” The corners of Lily’s eyes crinkled as she pointed at the wide path below them. Two deep divots stretched from a hidden road, all the way over the hills as far as the eye could see. “How many carriages can you think of that use secret passages in the dead of autumn?”

“They were here,” James said breathlessly, his face flushing with excitement. “What are we waiting for?”

Not a single smile faltered as they clambered down the mountainside—Marlene skipped along the edge of the road when they reached it and twirled Dorcas until she could kiss the laugh from her mouth. The wagon tracks could have belonged to a lumber cart, a mason, or even a damn cabbage merchant for all Sirius cared. It was still a direct path to their goal. A direct path to Fleamont and Euphemia, along with everyone whose absence made his friends' hearts ache with grief.

How had it been so many weeks since he last saw their faces? It seemed like a year and the blink of an eye all at once. Will they recognize me? Sirius wondered as they ducked into the sparse forest for a bit of cover. I’m not sure if I would recognize myself.

He hadn’t set eyes on a mirror since…well, probably not since Hemgard on their first night away. His last proper bath that didn’t include rushing river water was in Bailey, more than three weeks prior. At least nobody in the group was going to judge him for it. They all stunk the same.

Sirius felt stronger, too. He had been wiry when he left Silvalith, then replaced that teenage awkwardness with something softer in Harindvar while he grew accustomed to easy comfort. Over the course of a month spent running for his life, his chest and legs had filled out, and it was easier than ever to swing his sword. The muscle memory from years spent in combat training returned quicker than he would have liked. James had always been stocky; he and Lily carried a similar gravity about them that had only grown. Marlene’s arms were even more toned than before, and Dorcas’ shoulders had broadened from so much shooting. Some of Peter’s baby face had melted away—he looked older, more mature.

And Remus… “What?”

Sirius shook his head. “Nothing. Just thinking.”

“About?” Remus’ thumb trailed absently over his knuckles.

“We grew up.” As Sirius said it, the truth hit him even harder. In spite of the untethered terror they faced daily, all seven of them seemed more settled in their skin.

Remus looked amused. “We’re all in our twenties.”

“Still. We’re not completely clueless idiots fumbling around on adrenaline and luck anymore.”

"...I guess not.”

“I can be right on occasion,” Sirius teased, giving him a bump with his shoulder. Remus nudged him back, and soon it devolved into a full-blown jostling war that only ended when he tripped over Lily and nearly sent all three of them tumbling into a tree with a series of shouts in varying degrees of panic.

Silvalith looked much the same as it had six years prior, when he grabbed a handful of necessities through a haze of fury and pain before setting out on the east road. The woods even smelled familiar, sharp and fresh in the crisp air. Small cottages dotted the countryside—they all appeared to be occupied and it was far too risky to even consider approaching them. For all its quaint beauty, Silvalith was still a pit of vipers; if they were recognized, they would certainly be killed.

By some miracle and no lack of scrapes from hiding in the bushes whenever someone passed by, they made it to the outer city of Os Anguis. Torches flanked the castle drawbridge a mile from their campsite; maybe it was petty, but the surrounding walls looked rather unimpressive compared to Varghal. High white towers climbed from the castle itself, bearing silver-green banners of proud, winding snakes. Sirius’ stomach lurched.

They had not lit a fire since the previous morning; fresh food simply wasn’t worth the risk so close to the citadel. He was halfway through his second day-old roast squirrel when a horrible groaning noise filled the night. In an instant, all seven of them were braced for combat—Remus’ sharp eyes scanned the woods as he crouched, stock-still and spring-tense. The ground trembled beneath their feet.

“There,” Marlene whispered, tilting her chin forward. The front gates finished opening with a high squeal and Sirius’ blood ran cold.

Legions of soldiers marched out, their torches and banners held high as armor clanged in a death knell with each step. “We’re too late,” he muttered. “This—Riddle’s got his entire army on the move.”

“We can’t stop them all,” Lily said. “And I’d rather not die trying after we came all this way.”

“Agreed.” Peter chewed the edge of his thumbnail. “We need a way to get in and out of the city without being seen. Can we steal uniforms?”

Dorcas shook her head. “Seven would be a stretch, but we would need fifteen once we get our parents. They would notice that many missing and we can't carry them with us. We need to be sneaky.”

If Sirius was asked to describe his friends in one word, ‘sneaky’ would not even make it into the top 100. They attracted trouble like magnets and seemed physically incapable of shutting the f*ck up—it was a miracle they had made it to Os Anguis at all. No wonder the Death Eaters had tracked them so easily.

“Where are they going?” Marlene asked as a worried crease appeared between her brows. Soldiers continued to flood out with no sign of stopping—their spears sparkled in the moonlight.

“My best guess is the Middle Kingdom,” Sirius said. “Riddle almost took it during his last campaign, and the current royals wouldn’t put up much of a fight. He’ll spread from there.”

Remus straightened, though he still eyed the trees warily. “We need to work fast. Get in, get out, get home.”

“There’s no way we’re going to be able to sneak in there tonight, not as long as the soldiers are still moving." James sighed through his nose. "I’ll take first watch.”

“Me, too.” Lily looked troubled as she sat down on a log and began fiddling with the blunt edge of her axe.

“It’ll take them a long time to reach the border,” Peter said. “At least we have that going for us.”

“Not if they use the tunnels, remember? The Middle Kingdom would have no warning."

“But with so many people—"

"We should talk more in the morning," Sirius suggested without looking away from the soldiers marching below them. It was a force unlike any he had seen; unless they completed their mission, the rest of the continent didn't stand a chance. He joined the pile of limbs and coats after a moment, huddling close for warmth. Their tent would be far too conspicuous, even in the dark.

For the first time in over a week, Sirius had a nightmare. He assumed the near-constant trauma was the culprit for his brain completely shutting down at night, so it made sense that life would find a way to kick his ass after a smidgen of victory. Blood slicked his hands as he drove his sword into the Death Eater’s abdomen, ripping a gasp from her—when he glanced up at her face, it was Lily staring back at him in agony. “Traitor,” she spat through wet, crimson lips.

The world tilted, and he was on a battlefield of ash and rubble as a madman’s cackle filled the air. James was convulsing in his arms, eyes wide with pain as he clutched his broken bow. A dark red patch spread across his chest, and Sirius watched his eyes go dim.

The laughter didn’t stop as the dream changed again and again and again. Dorcas, staring vacantly at the sky; Peter, in a heap by a hunk of stone; Marlene, begging Sirius to save her through bloody teeth even though it was far too late; Remus in his vulnerable human form, pale and still and just out of reach.

Sirius was in too much pain to do more than kneel in the wreckage of the city while his family lay dead around him, utterly alone. “I’m sorry,” he finally forced out, setting off a flood of apologies as the laughter grew so loud his ears rang with it. When the ground opened up and swallowed him whole, he didn’t even try to stop it.

He jolted awake to someone’s palm over his mouth and lashed out as panic coursed through him, then went still as the person laced their fingers with his and shushed him softly. “Just a nightmare,” Remus soothed, carefully removing his hand. “You were making too much noise. I’m sorry I startled you.”

Sirius closed his eyes as a kiss brushed his cheek and gripped Remus’ hand, letting the last of the tremors rock through him with each wheezing breath. “You’re okay?” he rasped after a moment.

“I’m fine.” Remus showed no sign of pain, despite Sirius’ white-knuckle hold. “Are you?”

“You died.” Bitter fear rose in his throat. “We were in the city and you died, all of you. I was so alone.”

Remus tugged on his shoulder until he rolled onto his back, then brought Sirius’ hand up to splay over his chest; Sirius shuddered at the steady thump-thump beneath his palm and a few salty tears gathered in his throat. “See? I’m alright.”

“What—” His voice broke and he sat up just enough to wrap his arms around Remus and pull him close. The pulse of his heart did little to soothe the dregs of Sirius’ nightmare that ran through his veins like fire, scorching everything they touched. He was not a leader. He was not a loner. Without his friends, he wasn’t sure he’d survive saving the world. What would be left for him to love? “What are we doing?”

A warm hand splayed over his ribs. “We’re saving our parents, killing a king, and stopping an army. Once that’s over, we’re going to help plan a wedding for our friends and I’m going to take you ice skating again.”

“And if we don’t make it out?”

“We will.” Remus pressed their foreheads together. “Sleep.”

“I can’t.”

A smile played on his lips. “I’ll protect you.”

Sirius laughed, but it was weak. “That’s my line.”

“Which one of us has big, scary teeth again?”

“Try me and find out,” Sirius teased, tracing his cheekbone. His stomach still felt shivery. “How about we both sleep, yeah?”

“I’ve still got some time on watch before I switch with Pete.”

“Get some rest when you’re done.” Remus stood and dusted himself off, giving Marlene a quick nod across the campsite. Sirius got as comfortable as he could on the hard-packed earth and closed his eyes, letting Euphemia’s voice in his head guide him through the deep breathing exercises she taught him so many lifetimes ago.

The nightmare did not return, but he slept hard enough that his eyes itched in the morning sun. Everyone was sullen and quiet as they wolfed down a meager breakfast of scavenged berries—the main road was studded with footprints and forgotten items from the soldiers, which they combed for spare supplies before returning to their campsite.

“Who’s nervous?” James asked after a few minutes. Seven hands went into the air. “Good. Anyone got a plan?”

“We have nothing to bribe with and no way to draw our parents out,” Dorcas sighed. “I think our best bet is sneaking into the dungeons and breaking them out, then going back to kill Riddle.”

Sirius glanced at the battered rucksack by James’ blankets; he had not seen the actual weapon yet, mostly because none of them wanted to risk messing around with a magic item. His curiosity was killing him. “The seven of us will move faster than the army, especially if we have horses.”

“Fifteen of us,” Dorcas corrected.

“We should do it tonight,” Marlene said. “We’ve lost enough time already. They’ll never expect it and the soldiers are all gone.”

Sirius thought for a moment. “They won’t be armed. Our parents, I mean. The hard part is getting back out of the dungeons with double the number of people.”

James scrubbed a hand over his face. “They’re not just going to let us waltz out of there, either.”

“Then we’d better be prepared for some bloodshed.” Sirius looked around the circle at their resigned faces. “None of us wants to kill people, but it’s going to come down to us or them.”

“You’re right,” Lily said. “We knew this quest was going to end bloody, didn’t we? It just…might be a little worse than we expected.”

Dorcas held her hand out in the middle of the circle, palm down. “Whatever happens in there, let’s promise not to think differently of each other. We stick together no matter what.”

“No matter what,” Sirius murmured as they stacked their hands. A scrap of a chance was better than nothing. He felt as if they had a mere thread.

It was simultaneously the longest and shortest day of Sirius’ life. One moment, he was running through parrying forms with Marlene after lunch, and the next, the sun was three-quarters of the way through the sky. When night began its relentless approach, they packed their things and hid them in the underbrush—once Riddle was dead, they would grab what they had and run. It wasn’t a pristine plan, but it was better than nothing.

Anticipation made Sirius’ hands shake as they geared up, strapping scabbards and spears in utter quiet. Remus checked his sword before sheathing it, though he looked troubled; Sirius touched his elbow. “What’s wrong?”

“If I shift and we don’t kill all the guards, they’ll know. It was already stupid to let those Death Eaters get away before.” His jaw twitched. “My choices are murder or betraying my country’s greatest secret. Devil, meet deep blue sea.”

“We’ll be with you the whole time. You’re not going to be alone through it.” Sirius raised his voice slightly and glanced around. “That goes for everyone. We do this as a team, or we don’t do it at all.”

As they began the steady trek toward Os Anguis, James wrapped an arm around his shoulders and gave him a squeeze. “Start as a team, end as a team, yeah?”

Sirius quirked an eyebrow. “I guess we’ll just ignore that bit in the middle.”

“Exactly,” James laughed under his breath. His face was alight with hope. “I can’t wait to see them.”

“They were worried about you.” Monty, I don’t see him! “They—they were worried about us both.”

Getting into the city was easy—since it was a trading hub, Os Anguis had a million and a half for merchant entrances. All they had to do was choose the darkest one, knock out the guards, and creep into the outer ring. Riddle’s castle was a bit more of a challenge, but after half an hour of careful spying they saw a young maid leave an unguarded side door. Dorcas tilted her chin toward it and they all nodded, tiptoeing across the darkened plaza without a sound. Remus held the door open so they could slip inside, keeping a careful watch on the surrounding area with unwavering attention.

The castle was wonderfully warm, even in the narrow hall. Sirius flexed his sore fingers as Remus eased the door shut against the biting wind—if they weren’t literally on death’s doorstep, he would have sighed in relief. A few guards passed through a nearby corridor and they plastered themselves against the wall until the footsteps disappeared and Sirius’ heart stopped hammering in his ears. Marlene pointed at a set of stairs leading down and tingles erupted in his stomach as they crept onward; if she was correct, they were mere minutes from seeing their parents.

CLANG.

All seven of them whipped around and Peter froze as a small bucket rolled away from his foot, the sound still ringing in the stone corridors. “Go!” Lily hissed, shoving Peter toward the stairs. Sirius whirled and came face-to-face with the point of a sword. Guards and Death Eaters alike poured in around them, armed to the teeth and grinning in triumph.

“Well, well, well.” A chill oozed down his spine. f*ck. “Look what the cat dragged in.”

“Sirius, who is this?” Lily asked warily. James’ eyes were huge in his face.

"Oh, you didn't tell them?" Sirius turned and met a dark, arched brow. Six years had certainly made a difference, but the resemblance between them had not dulled in the slightest. Cold eyes watched him, unblinking. "Typical."

"Regulus. Long time."

His lips twitched. "You always were a runner, weren't you? I'm surprised you kept this lot around."

"Sirius," Marlene muttered with a clear warning.

He held the dark gaze that remained one of their only stark identifiers. So much for escaping the past. “Say hello to my little brother, everyone,” Sirius managed around the sour taste in his mouth. “You look awful, Reg.”

"I look better than you, you f*cking coward," Regulus said coolly, though every word was razor-sharp. In his periphery, Sirius saw Remus watching them in slack-jawed shock.

"Reg, I can explain every—”

“Shut up.”

Sirius took a deep breath through his nose as every cell in his body begged to run screaming from the castle. “I don’t know what they told you—”

“Shut. Up.” Regulus’ jaw ticked.

“If they told you I ran—”

“Shut your f*cking mouth, you lying coward.” The words shivered out of him on a hissed breath and Sirius swallowed. Somewhere under the ice was the brother he had left behind. The one that had been taken from him. They didn’t break you yet, he thought as Regulus exhaled slowly to regain his composure.

“I never lied to you.”

Pain exploded across the side of his face—Sirius heard six voices cry out, but he had already locked his fingers in the front of Regulus’ thick black cloak as Regulus tried to throw him against the wall, his chin jutting out like a mule.

“I never lied to you!” Sirius shouted as Regulus’ cronies pried them apart and dragged him back to the group by his arms. The mask of noble pride on Regulus’ face had shattered, leaving a mix of agony and fury beneath. “I swear I never wanted—”

“I told want to hear it!”

“Just listen to me for once, you stubborn little—”

“I hate you!” The words hurt more than the backhand and Sirius fell silent. Regulus’ hands shook at his sides. “You’re a traitor and a liar and you abandoned your family for nothing.”

“Please, Reg, you don’t understand—”

“Easy, boys,” a smooth voice purred from the shadows to Sirius’ left. There was a soft shush of fabric before Bellatrix slithered from a narrow hallway, smug as the cat that caught the canary. Her travel clothes had been replaced by scaly armor that glimmered like oil; she reached up and curled perfectly manicured nails over Regulus’ shoulder, keeping him back as her eyes pinned Sirius in place. “Didn’t I tell you he was more fun?”

“Take your hands off him,” Sirius snarled. Surprise flickered over Regulus’ face.

Remus was tense next to him. “Sirius, what the f*ck is going on?"

“Bellatrix. Cousin. Freak of the family,” Sirius said by way of explanation. He didn’t want to see their faces; shame bubbled in his stomach.

“I’m the freak?” A feral smile spread across Bellatrix's lips. “Pity we’ll have to kill you before Auntie Walburga can pay a visit. Then again, you always were her greatest…disappointment.” She enunciated every syllable of the word like it was a prayer. “What, you didn’t tell them about your poor, tragic backstory? Didn’t give even a little warning to your friends, dear cousin?”

“You’ve tried to kill me before, cousin,” he bit out. “It’s never gone in your favor. Call whoever you want, but get your hand off my brother.”

Madness gleamed in every angle of her face as she leaned close to him. “I'll muzzle your boy and slit his throat first, so you can see every drop of his blood paint my floor."

He didn’t so much as flinch. "I'd like to see you try.”

“Looks like I’ll be bringing your head back to your mother a little—"

“Wait!” Peter rocked forward, then back again as four spears bristled. Bellatrix’s gaze snapped up and Sirius saw a glint of metal in her hand. “Wait, don't hurt him. We had a deal, remember?”

“You what?” the rest of them chorused.

“Pete—” James faltered, staring at him with wide eyes. Sirius’ heart dropped through the floor.

“You promised not to kill them,” Peter continued, looking directly at Bellatrix. “You said that if I brought them here, they wouldn’t get hurt.”

“You sold us out.” Lily opened and closed her mouth a few times in disbelief. “You sold us out!”

Sirius wrenched free of his captors and grabbed Peter by the lapels, slamming him against the wall with enough force that his feet left the ground. “You little rat," he seethed. "After everything we’ve been through—”

Two guards dragged him backwards by his armpits—one hit him in the gut hard enough that all the air rushed from his lungs with a whoosh. Remus lunged forward, but Bellatrix opened a cut on his lip with one sharp slap. “Down, boy,” she snapped.

Marlene was dead silent across the circle with her eyes closed. Sirius couldn’t imagine what she was feeling—her oldest friend, a traitor. “How could you?” Dorcas sounded torn between anger and grief. “Peter, how could you do this?”

“They swore to leave my mum’s village alone if I turned you in.” He shook his head as tears welled up. “You won’t be harmed. I’m so sorry.”

Sirius felt no pity. “When we get out of here, I’ll kill you myself.”

The soldiers stripped their weapons away and pushed them toward the staircase, nearly throwing them down the first few steps. The shock of betrayal dissipated quickly and they tried to push back, but their opponents were relentless, and they had to settle for shouting furiously in Peter's direction; the air burned with vitriol. It smelled worse the deeper they went into the dungeons, like old hay and misery. Marlene’s breathing went shallow when she saw the large iron cage ahead and she struggled to get away before a guard grabbed her by the hair and pushed her in. Their fight was all in vain—within moments, the bolt fell with a heavy thud, leaving them in utter darkness save for two torches by the door. They pounded on the thick bars as the Death Eaters disappeared up the stairs. “Pettigrew, you'd better hope we never get out of here!” Remus shouted as the door high above slammed shut.

“I can’t believe this.” James shook his head and kicked the base of the cell. To their right, a prisoner shifted in the darkness. “I can’t f*cking believe this.”

Lily shot Sirius a withering glare. “I knew your family was sh*tty, but you never told us they were Death Eaters.”

“Shockingly enough, I don’t like talking about it!” Sirius snapped. “You think I didn’t try and stop Regulus from joining them? It was supposed to be me!”

“None of us even knew he existed!” James glanced at the floor and Lily turned furious red. “Or somebody did.”

“Sorry for not sharing my terrible childhood with all of you,” Sirius said sarcastically. “I was under the impression you all knew how to read, or did you miss the great bloody 'runaway' sign on those wanted posters?”

Remus still looked wounded. “You said you trusted us.”

“I do! I just don’t mention that my family is full of murderous lunatics when I want people to like me!”

“Hello?”

Sirius paused as a new voice filtered from the large cell to their right. It sounded...vaguely familiar. Dorcas’ breath audibly caught in her chest and she hurried to the other wall, pressing her face against the rusty iron.

A heartbeat later, she let out a scream.

“Dorcas!” A man’s face appeared in the flickering torchlight, then vanished for a moment. “It’s them!”

More shouts filled the air, but they were full of relief instead of anger. Sirius felt his blood drain to his feet when a head of wild hair appeared in the torchlight. “James,” he choked out. “Jamie—”

A broken noise tore from James’ chest as he gripped the bars. “Dad! Dad, it’s me!”

“James.” Fleamont’s voice broke. “Sirius, is that you?”

“I’m here.” He sank to the ground as his knees finally gave out. His brain couldn't keep up anymore. “I’m here, I’m here, I’m—I’m so sorry.”

“I can’t—” Remus desperately shoved his shoulder through the small gap in an attempt to reach his mother's pale hand; less than a foot of space hung between their outstretched fingers. “You’re too far away!”

She wiped a few tears off her cheeks. “It’s alright, sweetheart, I can still see you.”

“How long have you been here?” Marlene asked as she gave up on scrabbling with the lock and joined them.

“More than a week,” Queen Annette answered shakily. “We missed you so much, darling.”

“I missed you, too,” she sobbed.

“We saw you.” Fleamont looked to Sirius as if he was trying to memorize his face. “On the hill by the valley, when you were chasing us. Where was everyone else?”

Sirius' lower lip trembled and he shook his head. “I’m sorry.”

“We were in the Wildland.” James’ voice was hoarse. “If we had known—”

“The what?” Euphemia and King Amir shouted at the same time.

“You split up?” King Rashid sounded appalled. “Why?”

“There was this stupid wizard and we didn’t have enough time to get everything we needed.” Dorcas sniffled and reached out, as if she could touch her fathers despite the distance. “Papa. Papa.”

Lyall’s eyes never left Remus. “This feels like a dream.”

“We’ll find a way out, don’t worry,” Remus promised, feeling along the edge of the cell.

Hope offered a weak smile. “That’s what we’re supposed to say.”

“Maybe—maybe we can lift the hinges?” Lily suggested, bracing her back against one set. “Dorcas, you’re taller than me. Take that side while I push.”

Remus and James went to the other end and they all shoved together—a slight creaking noise made Sirius’ heart clench with hope, but the door didn’t budge. “Does anyone have a knife?” James asked. “Maybe a pin for the lock?”

“I think a key would work better,” Peter said quietly from the base of the stairs. Sirius’ anger roared back to life and the six of them lined the front of their cell, steaming with barely-contained rage. It was his fault they were here. His fault that the first glimpse of their parents was through two layers of iron bars.

Regulus appeared behind him half a second later and only spared them a quick glance. He was calm and collected once again, and Sirius watched, dumbfounded, as he passed Peter a set of keys from the depths of his cloak. “I suppose you haven’t told them?”

Peter swallowed hard and unlocked the cage; before anyone could move, Marlene engulfed him in a hug. “Are you alright?”

“Who gives a sh*t?” Lily snapped. “He’s a traitor.”

“No, he’s not,” Marlene said as she released him. “Just a very, very good actor.”

Sirius blinked. He could've heard a pin drop. “What?”

“Sorry, who is this?” Fleamont asked from his cell. “I don’t think we’ve met, young man.”

“I’m Peter. Peter Pettigrew.” He waved awkwardly before turning back to their group. “Marlene and I came down to the city to scope it out and Regulus found us, so the three of us made a plan to get into the dungeons safely. No offense, Sirius, but it’s pretty easy to tell who he is.”

“The safest way into the city was doing exactly what we were trying to avoid?” Dorcas raised her eyebrows, clearly still suspicious. “Clever.”

“You are all ridiculous,” Regulus muttered as he took a second set of keys from the wall and unlocked the other cell door.

Sirius hung back near Peter and Lily while the others reunited with a burst of sound and movement. His heart ached with joy as Dorcas and her fathers sank to their knees in a tangle of shaking relief, and Marlene’s mothers nearly tackled her in their excitement. James and his parents swayed slowly in the middle of the room; Remus’ family was utterly silent, but Hope hadn’t stopped peppering his face with kisses and Lyall was holding his shoulder in a white-knuckled grip.

“Sirius.” James’ hoarse voice brought him back to himself and Euphemia reached out, beckoning him toward their hug. He went without question and nearly dissolved at the familiar warmth.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured into her shoulder. They were here; he could hold them again. After everything, he had almost forgotten the encompassing safety they brought.

Fleamont exhaled softly and rubbed his back. “You keep saying that, but I don’t know why.”

“I left James. He almost died.”

James bumped him with his hip. “If this is about the Wildland—”

“I promised to stay with you.”

Euphemia tilted his chin toward her with a gentleness that made him ache. “When we took you in as our ward, we did it with no expectations. You are not obligated to glue yourself to James. You never have been. We just want you.”

“Thank you,” he managed. He held them tighter as the tears threatened to spill over. “For—for everything. I missed you so much.”

“You have until dawn before the next guards come down for their shift,” Regulus said after a few more minutes of hugging. “Whatever you’re planning, I suggest you do it around then.” When they stayed quiet, he narrowed his eyes. “You do have a plan, right?”

“Not…an official one,” Marlene said carefully. All eight adults and Regulus groaned aloud. “At least we got here!”

James shrugged. “We’ve been winging it this whole trip. As long as Lily doesn’t leap over any more cliffs, we’ll be fine.”

“I suppose you’re Lily, then?” Fleamont looked over at her, clearly amused. “Do I even want to ask about that?”

“It was in the Wildland." She blushed with a slight grimace. "Not my most rational moment.”

“I think all of you have some explaining to do.”

“Explanations can probably wait until we’re out of here,” Dorcas said as she reluctantly extracted herself from her fathers’ hold. “We really do need a plan.”

Sirius looked over to the corner of the room, where Regulus lingered, and tilted his head toward the hallway that lead to the dungeonmaster's office. After a moment's hesitation, he nodded; Sirius felt James give him a light squeeze of reassurance before letting him go.

They followed a line of torches through a dank corridor—the office was empty, thankfully, and Regulus perched on the edge of the desk without looking at him. A few beats of tense silence passed between them. “You found a family.”

“I missed you.”

“I hate you.” He sounded miserable and drained, but not angry.

Sirius sighed through his nose. “Can you at least tell me why?”

“You left. You left me with them and they only got worse.”

“I’m sorry. If I had a choice, I would have taken you with me.”

“You did have a choice.” Regulus’ voice wobbled. “Not all of us can just run away, Sirius. I never wanted this, but they would have killed me.”

“I didn’t run away,” Sirius said, sitting next to him. In the low candlelight, Regulus looked even more like a younger version of him. Understanding settled in his gut. “Reg, they disowned me after the party and told me to never come back. I'm only alive because James' parents tracked me down.”

Regulus looked down at his slender hands. "They lied to me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I should’ve known. It wouldn’t be the first time.” He shook his head with a humorless laugh and tugged a loose thread on his cloak. “They’ll know it was me as soon as you escape.”

“Then come with us. You’re already helping us—what’s a little more treason?” Sirius saw the flicker of a smile at the edge of his mouth and scooted closer. “Why are you helping us, anyway?”

“I told you, I hate it here. These people are horrible, and Riddle is—” He pressed his lips together. “There’s something wrong with him, Sirius. If his plan continues, so many people are going to die. The whole country will fall apart. I don't want to sit on the sidelines anymore.”

“Will you come with us?”

“I’ll think about it." The room was silent again, but some of the wire-tight tension had drained away. "We should probably make sure your friends are coming up with a plan.”

“I really did miss you, you know. Every day.”

Their shoulders brushed. “I don’t think things can go back to normal.”

“We have time,” Sirius said quietly. “We’ll work on it.”

Heading back to the group felt less like a walk to the gallows; the air between them had cleared, and Sirius reveled in having his little brother within reach again. The hole Regulus left in his heart was starting to heal around the edges.

“So, did we get anything done?” he asked, sitting crosslegged next to Remus.

“We’re going to wait until just before the guards change shifts and catch them while they’re tired. Pete brought all our weapons back, plus the…thing.” James’ gaze flickered to Regulus.

“Easy, Jamie, he’s on our side.”

“I’m the one who took it in the first place,” Regulus scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Riddle asked for it by name, so I figured it must be important and switched them.”

“Huh. Thanks.”

“He’s a terrible person and needs to die. Betrayal will make it hurt even more. It's a win-win for me, really.”

Marlene nodded in approval. “I like you. Sirius, is this what you’d be like with a few more braincells?”

Sirius wadded up a clump of hay and threw it at her head; their circle was tight enough that there wasn't much distance to cover, so the ball kept its shape quite well before exploding all over her front. “Shut your face.”

“Bite me.” He bared his teeth at her and she looked over at Remus in mock-horror. “Oh, no, he’s turning into you!”

Annette co*cked her head in confusion. “What?”

“Because of the…” Marlene trailed off as Remus gave her a warning look. “Uh, nevermind. Inside joke.”

Hope turned slowly to Remus, who slid a bit closer to Sirius. “Remus.”

“Yes?”

“Did you or did you not—”

“I did,” he blurted. “Sorry. I mean, it was justified, but they know.”

Hope pinched the bridge of her nose. “I can't believe I'm saying this, but please tell me it was a life or death situation.”

“Oh, it was,” Lily assured her. “He was about to get stabbed and the crazy lady was going to slice Sirius’ face off.”

“We would’ve frozen to death without him when we crossed the mountains,” James added.

Eight adults stared at them, wide-eyed with horror. Regulus seemed mildly impressed, but a little pained. “Explain, please,” Euphemia said faintly.

“Which part?”

“All of it,” they said in unison.

“We were on the road to Os Anguis and got ambushed by some Death Eaters,” Sirius said before anyone could make it worse. “Remus’ sword got knocked away mid-battle and Bellatrix has this weird thing about killing me slowly, so she pinned me down and he…did the thing.”

“What thing?” King Amir gave Remus a wary look and Dorcas rested her hand on his arm.

“It’s nothing dangerous,” she said.

The rest of them made varying noises of protest and Remus tilted his hand from side to side. “It’s a little dangerous.”

“You said you crossed the mountains?” Euphemia prompted. All seven of them grimaced at the memory.

“Yeah, it sucked. We spent, what, ten days up there?” James looked around the circle; everyone shrugged. “That was the worst part of the trip for sure.”

“Tunnels,” Marlene cut in at the same time Lily said, “The metal boar.”

Lyall made a timeout motion, looking exhausted. “Let’s start from the top, okay?”

“We don’t have time for that,” Regulus interrupted. “You have an hour until dawn, maybe less.”

Sirius sighed and saw Dorcas’ shoulders slump. “Gear up, everyone,” he muttered as he helped James to his feet. The calm atmosphere disappeared as they headed to the table; collecting their weapons was practically muscle memory.

“You still don’t have a plan,” Queen Louise pointed out, then frowned when Dorcas slid the cloth-wrapped dagger into her belt. “What’s that?”

“That’s what we went to the Wildland to get,” Dorcas said as she tested her bowstring.

“It’s a magic knife,” James clarified, skimming his hands along the fletching of his arrows.

“What do you need a magic knife for?”

Marlene slipped both her blades into her arm guards and tightened the straps till they were snug. “We’re going to kill the king.”

Chapter 11: The Viper's Nest

Chapter Text

A beat of incredulous silence followed Marlene’s announcement. “No, you’re not,” Fleamont half-laughed. His smile faltered when he saw the lack of humor on their faces. “No, you are not.”

“We are,” James confirmed as he slid a knife into his belt. Sirius was glad to see he had learned his lesson about short-range weapons since the ambush.

“That’s actually the one thing we’re certain of,” Marlene said.

Hope’s mouth fell open a bit. “That’s the worst idea you’ve had yet.”

“Oh, I promise it’s not,” Sirius said under his breath.

“You’re committing treason.”

“It’s not treason if you’re not a citizen,” all seven of them chorused. The adults looked even more horrified and Regulus put his face in his hands.

“The wizard in the woods told us we need to kill the king, which we figured we’d have to do anyway.” Remus shrugged. “We’ve thought it through. We have the dagger and everything.”

“You think he’ll just let you walk up and stab him?” Amir put the back of his hand on Dorcas’ forehead as if he was feeling for a fever. “You’re smarter than that!”

The ceiling creaked above them and Regulus glanced up with a frown. “The guards will be changing soon. You should get ready to go.”

“Where will Riddle be?” James asked. His hands were steadier than Sirius had ever seen as he nocked an arrow.

“In his office, in the western tower. If you follow the main hall, you’ll see a staircase past a set of double doors.”

James scanned his face for a moment, then nodded. “Thanks, Regulus.”

Something in Sirius’ stomach jolted at hearing his brother’s name from James’ mouth, though it wasn’t exactly a bad feeling. It was almost...peaceful, as if a piece of him settled. Marlene flexed her fingers around the grip of her sword. “We can’t all fit through the door—”

“Stop.” Louise’s voice trembled. “Just stop for a moment and think, all of you. Killing King Riddle will not solve all the problems we’re facing right now. If anything, it will make them worse. We didn’t get you back just to lose you to some fool's errand.”

“He took you away,” Marlene said, low and furious. “And I will never forgive him for that.”

“We have the knife and we’re going to use it.” Dorcas kept her gaze on the fletching of her arrows. “We've survived this long because we fought and survived, and we're not stopping until he can't hurt anyone else, ever again.”

“James…” Euphemia trailed off as she searched her son’s face for hesitation, but every hint of James’ friendly glow was gone; Sirius hated to see him that way, though it did not surprise him.

“Who’s going through the door first?” James asked at last.

“I will,” Marlene said.

Dorcas nodded. “I’m with you.”

“Me, too.” Peter passed the last of the extra weapons to their parents.

Sirius nearly volunteered himself as well, but bit it back at the last moment. He could shield Euphemia and Fleamont better if he stayed. Hope cupped Remus’ cheek in her palm, tracing the shadows under his eye. “I’ll be alright,” he said quietly. “Don’t worry about me.”

“We’re your parents.” Lyall cleared his throat, though it sounded tight. “It’s our job to worry.”

Something clattered upstairs and they all winced. Marlene pulled away and crept up the dark stairwell, catching torchlight on her blade as Dorcas and Peter fell in behind her. Sirius planted himself firmly between the imminent danger and the others; if something went wrong, he would be the first line of defense. Marlene cast a last look over her shoulder and counted down on her fingers.

Three.

Two.

One.

She nodded and Peter landed a hard kick to the door. It flew open—there was a single half-shout and the sounds of a scuffle, then silence. Sirius hurried after them, preparing himself for carnage.

Very little blood stained the floor, save for the small pool from a gash on one unconscious man’s shoulder. Peter held his arm tight around another’s neck until she passed out cold, then let her slide down to the cobblestones. Near the mouth of the hall, a guard with a crossbow laid limp with an arrow in his chest.

Sirius forced down a shudder. Death came for everybody—they were just making sure it didn’t come for them, first. “Everyone alright?”

Three nods answered him and they tiptoed down the hallway in a tight group, following Regulus as he dipped in and out of the shadows. Faint music and laughter filtered through the thick walls. A party? he mouthed to Regulus, who rolled his eyes and gestured to their group. Sirius scowled. Of course the Death Eaters would be celebrating the capture of their most powerful enemies.

This’ll be one nasty surprise, he thought, watching torches dance around the corner ahead. His heart pounded in his ears and he put one hand on Remus’ chest, pushing him back a step. “Don’t shift unless you have to,” he murmured.

A mixture of frustration and gratitude flickered over his face. “I can help.”

“We’re in this together, remember?” Lily knocked their shoulders together. “Stay back until we need a surprise.”

Sirius licked his lips and tried to coax some moisture into his mouth as they continued forward; Regulus was little more than a blot of ink in his dark cloak, but his pale eyes burned with fury and he nodded without hesitating when Sirius raised an eyebrow at him.

“Go.”

Two guards were down before they could even yell, followed by three more. They took no lives, but the poor saps would wake up with raging headaches come morning. The main hall stretched out before them, completely deserted--Sirius sucked in a sharp breath and took off at a sprint, keeping his weight forward to muffle his footsteps. The double doors at the far end were wide open. The second he passed the dining hall without being seen, he ushered the parents ahead of him. Foolishly, he allowed himself to hope.

A shout of alarm rang out. "sh*t," he hissed, drawing his sword. Fleamont's dark eyes flared wide, and Sirius shoved him forward with only a slight pang of guilt. "Keep running! Get out of here!"

He whirled around and blocked a blade coming down over his head, and then the hall was too clogged with black cloaks to see much of anything. A flash of red hair caught the edge of his vision as Lily used her axe as a tripwire to bring down a guard; Dorcas' spear flashed in a deadly arc, slicing through the thick leather armor of the Silval breastplates. Regulus covered his back and steel flickered over his fingers, embedding themselves in the bodies of his former comrades. His cloak rippled, and he was gone.

Sirius saw James shatter a man's nose with the shaft of his bow while Marlene engaged two Death Eaters next to him, parrying each of their strokes. He aimed to maim, not kill, but eventually his brain shut off all thoughts outside ofsurvive survive survivelive. He kicked a crossbow out of a woman's reach and side-tackled a tall Death Eater whose dagger moved in a swift arc toward Lyall's ribcage. "Run!" he ordered as he scrambled to his feet and slashed outward, giving the king's chest a push. "Get to the doors andget the hell out!"

"Where's Remus?" Lyall demanded.

Sirius didn't even need to look. "He's fine! Worst comes to worst, he starts ripping throats out. Now go!"

Weight slammed into his side like a runaway carriage and he collided with the unforgiving floor; a red-feathered arrow sprouted from his attacker's shoulder a mere second later and he scrambled to his feet, grabbing Hope by the elbow as he made a break for the doors. Fighting when they could focus on getting out alive was a waste of time. "Are they all in?" Lily called as they passed, flipping a woman over her head onto the tiles.

"I don't know! Go inside, I'll be right behind you!"

Sweat stung his eyes as he pushed through the fray, and he was pretty sure someone got a lucky scrape across his back; it burned each time he turned too fast. Peter's hand closed around his upper arm and yanked him beneath the path of a throwing knife, but he didn't let go once they straightened and continued hauling Sirius toward the doors with Remus and Lily hot on their heels. "We're the last," he panted before Sirius could even ask.

The pained groan and hardslam of the doors shutting behind him was the best sound Sirius had heard all day, closely followed by the thud of the lock sliding home. He collapsed against it, out of breath and bleeding from more scratches than he could even think of counting. Thirteen, fourteen, plus me and Reg. Sixteen even. He closed his eyes for a moment as relief cooled the adrenaline in his veins.All accounted for.

"Is everyone alive?" Marlene asked, holding her sleeve to the wound on her lip. "Well, that was exciting."

“Riddle is down the hall, to the right,” Regulus said, gesturing toward the other side of the room. Two shallow cuts decorated his face, and one sleeve was torn. “You have to move fast before they go around to the other door and cut you off. I don’t know how many guards are behind it right now.”

The doors creaked and Sirius braced against them. Warm blood trickled down his back. “We might want to get moving,” he suggested as the telltale sound of a crossbow bolt thudded next to his ear.

Voices echoed down the corridor and Peter pressed his lips together. “That’ll be reinforcements. This would be a good time for a surprise.”

“Remus sheathed his sword with a slow breath. "I guess that’s where I come in."

“By yourself?” Rashid frowned; on his other side, Hope closed her eyes and reached for Lyall’s hand.

“Regulus, you should get them out,” James said. “All the guards will be focused on us.”

“We’re not going to leave you,” Fleamont argued. “We can fight.”

“When was the last time you ate? Or slept?" James' voice shook; Sirius could see the fear on his face. "We’ve been preparing for this for weeks now, but I’m not going to let you get hurt when there’s a good chance you can escape safely.”

“I will not leave without you—”

The doors creaked and Sirius pushed back harder. “We don’t have time for this. Reg, lead them out. Remus, are you ready?”

“Wait.” Remus tilted his chin up and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips. “Worked last time, didn’t it?”

Sirius grinned, though his pulse still hummed rabbit-quick in his fingertips. “Quite the good luck charm.”

“What’s all this?” Hope asked. Heat prickled the back of Sirius’ neck as Remus turned pink; Lily rolled her eyes with a touch of fondness.

“It’s, um—” Remus headed toward the other door with a wave of his hand. “It’s happening. We’ll talk about it later. Dorcas, Pete, on my signal.”

Sirius pushed against the shuddering wood as Remus rolled his shoulders out, then paused and offered his sword to his father. “Take it. You lost yours.”

Lyall frowned. “Remus, you need—”

“Oh, come on, Da,” Remus scoffed. The edges of his eyes crinkled and he pushed the blade into his hands. “We both know I don’t need that.”

He crouched into a runner’s lunge and cracked his knuckles. Dorcas bit her lip. “Ready?”

A beat passed. Shouting voices echoed from the corridor. “Now.”

The doors opened with a groan, and Remus took one, two, three running steps before throwing himself forward. The wolf exploded mid-leap, crashing through the first line of defense with a feral snarl as it tore into them like paper dolls.Several horrified shouts echoed off the walls, but he didn't stop to wonder which group they came from before charging into the melee. Vicious pride lit in his chest.

His arms ached from fighting—every distraction was dulled by the harsh sound of his own breaths ringing in his ears. Focus, focus, focus. The wolf was the main target, but Remus was swift and clever with each movement; he bowled over as many as he could while Lily made a beeline for the tower entrance. Out of the corner of his eye, Sirius saw Regulus usher the parents into a side hall. A knot of tension unraveled in his gut. Whatever happened to the seven of them, at least they had succeeded in part of their mission.

“Come on!” Lily shouted, shattering the lock and throwing open the door. Sirius’ hands were sticky with blood and he forced himself to think of something, anything else as he shouldered through the crowd.

He collapsed against the cool stone of the spiral staircase with a huff as Marlene closed the door behind them and dragged a table over to brace against it, wiping the sweat from her forehead with her arm guard. Lily had a nasty cut on her upper arm and the side of Peter’s face was turning purple; Remus’ muzzle was covered in red as he padded back and forth in front of the door.

“This is it.” James winced as the wood shuddered under the weight of Death Eaters trying to force their way through. “This is the last thing we have to do.”

“We still have to stop an army,” Marlene said wryly. “And, y’know, survive.”

“We will.” Sirius’ heart pounded—he loved them all so deeply it almost hurt, though that may have been his battered body screaming at him for his stupidity.

They formed a makeshift barricade to delay the guards long enough that they could at least reach Riddle; Lily bit her lip as she shoved a final decorative chair under the knob. “That’ll have to do for now,” she muttered with a nervous glance up the stairs. “I have a terrible feeling about this.”

Something nudged Sirius’ palm—he buried his hand in the thick fur at Remus’ neck and took a deep breath. “Ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” James squeezed his elbow as he passed, leading their ragtag group onward as he always did. The familiarity was comforting.

The staircase was dead quiet as they walked up; the pale stones made it feel far too much like a tomb for Sirius’ liking. He swallowed the sour taste of the thought and tried to center his mind on the pastel streaks streaming through the windows from the growing daylight outside. It seemed too beautiful for the horrors they were certainly about to face.

King Riddle’s office door looked no different from the others they had seen, save for the carved snakes that curled around the frame and stared back at them. James nodded to Marlene, and she kicked it open with a BANG.

A flash of silver darted out—Marlene doubled over with a huff, clutching her stomach. She pulled her hand away from her side and stared at the red smearing it for one heartbeat, two, then dropped to the floor.

“No!” Dorcas caught her just before she hit the ground, letting out a broken sound that ripped into Sirius’ lungs. It rang in his ears, blocking any other noise. He couldn’t breathe.

Marlene held her hand over the small blade embedded just below her ribcage and opened her mouth a few times before anything came out. “Is—is he there? Oh, f*ck.”

“He’s there,” James said lowly.

Marlene cried out as Peter pressed down on the wound. “Shh, sweetheart, just look at me,” Dorcas murmured, her voice shaking. “You’re alright. I've got you.”

Riddle’s arm was still in the throwing position when Sirius tore his eyes away from Marlene; his smile was oil-slick and even more crazed than Bellatrix. He leaned over his desk, spreading his spidery fingers over the dark wood. “You’re too late, you know."

“Call off your army and come with us,” James said, drawing his bowstring back. Remus pinned his ears back and bared his bloodstained fangs, placing himself between Marlene and the mad king.

“No.”

“Do it or we’ll kill you, right here, right now.”

Riddle threw his head back and laughed; Sirius shivered at the sound. “I’d love to see you try. I assume Dumbledore was the one who sent you to the Wildland? Batty old man, that one. Always speaking in fairytales and foolish nonsense.”

“Come with us now.”

“Asking again won’t change my mind.” Riddle’s cold eyes flickered over their group and he shook his head. “Pathetic. How are mummy and daddy, by the way? They’ll never make it out of the city alive, but it’s cute that you tried.”

The direwolf drew back its lips and stepped forward with a rumbling growl from deep in its chest—behind him, Marlene took an unsteady breath as Dorcas brushed the hair from her eyes.

The king gave him a disdainful once-over. “The mutt, I assume? Hmm. It’s rather unbecoming of a prince to be a half-breed. Down, pup.”

Remus came to a shuddering halt and a whine slipped from his muzzle; the air around him rippled, and suddenly he was human again, kneeling with his hands splayed on the ground. His eyebrows drew together in confusion before he parted his lips and a mouthful of blood dropped out.

Sirius shouted in alarm, dropping to his knees as his heart skipped a beat. “What did you do to him?” James demanded.

Panic made Remus’ eyes glassy and Sirius caught him as he listed to the side, gasping for breath. “Bella told me you were fond of the creature,” Riddle mused, turning his hand over with a sick smile. A wolflike howl tore from Remus’ throat, transitioning into a very human cry of agony as he clutched at Sirius’ arms.

“Leave him alone!”

“You should be thanking me. He might be better behaved once I’m through with him.” Tears streaked down Remus’ cheeks, cutting through blood and grime; Sirius glanced behind them and Marlene groaned in pain.

“Please,” he begged. The hope in his heart was draining faster than sand through an hourglass. “Please, just leave him alone. What do you want from us?”

“What do I want?” Riddle hummed. “I want you to die. First, though, it would be wonderful to see you bow to me. Especially you, Sirius Black.”

“Over my dead body,” he spat.

“Yes, that’s the whole point.” Riddle twitched his fingers and Remus squeezed his eyes shut.

“Don’t do it,” he ground out, breathless. “Don’t you dare.”

“We’ll never bow to you,” Marlene said with surprising venom, gripping Dorcas’ hand weakly. “Not to a monster that sacrifices his people like pigs.”

Riddle sighed in exasperation. “Just die already, would you? The poison should do it well enough, but bleeding out won’t be pretty if you keep fighting it.”

A cold stone settled in Sirius’ stomach and Peter’s eyes widened. “Poison?”

“Obviously. Now, lay down your weapons and bow to me, or your little pet is going to face the consequences. The magic has a rather annoying hold on him—he might survive, he might not, but I’d love to find out.”

Remus lurched and a thin line of blood trickled from each nostril, staining the porcelain-white floor. Sirius unbuckled his sword; without taking his eyes off the mad king, James lowered his bow. Metal scraped against stone behind him as Sirius wiped the red from Remus’ chin with his sleeve.

“You’re a madman and a killer.” Remus' hands clenched as Riddle curled his fingers, but his glare never faltered. “And you’ll never get away with this. You took everything, and I’ll rip your throat out myself if I have to.”

The waxen, spindly hand turned over and Remus choked on air before crumpling like a dead weight.

Sirius shielded his eyes as the air around him buzzed with light and energy--he flickered between wolf and human form too fast to register, but the pain on his face never eased for a second, not did his desperate hold on Sirius' hand. Lily and Peter both lunged forward just as Remus cried out and the light blazed forth, filling every crevice of the room for one blinding moment before it vanished. He was left limp on the floor and shaking like a leaf. Blood pooled from his nose and mouth, and trickled from the only ear in Sirius' sightline

Riddle flexed his jaw and the wrinkles on his faces smoothed; in mere seconds, he was twenty years younger. "It's been too long since I tasted real magic," he mused.

Remus sucked in a shuddering breath, unable to do more than shift. "Something's wrong. Something is wrong."

“What did you do to him?” Dorcas’ voice dripped with fury and her grip on Marlene tightened as a soft whine escaped Remus.

“I can’t—I can’t—”

“I can’t, I can’t,” Riddle mimicked. “There’s nothing you need to say unless you’re surrendering. Your parents will never make it out alone and none of your weapons can kill me.”

Sirius met James’ gaze. Riddle didn’t know about the Wildland dagger, and he didn’t know about Regulus. “You’re wrong,” Sirius said with as much courage as he could rally.

“Am I?”

“We’re not leaving until you’re dead.”

“Then you’ll be here a long, long time,” Riddle chuckled, stretching his neck. “That was quite the energy boost, I must say.”

Remus struggled to prop himself on his elbows, every breath labored and wheezing. “Give it back.”

“I don’t think I will.”

“Give what back?” Lily asked, eyeing them both warily.

“He took it.” Remus’ voice was shattered glass as his arms gave out again and he collapsed against Sirius. “It's gone, I can't--the magic. The wolf. It hurts.”

Ice washed down Sirius' spine; Riddle rolled his eyes. “Stop blubbering, it won’t matter in the end.”

“Yes, it will,” James said. “We’re here for one reason, and that’s to stop you from hurting anyone else.”

“You realize my army is already on the move, don't you? More people will die no matter what you do.”

“No.” He drew his bowstring back and aimed. “Just one.”

“I supposed you missed the part where none of your weapons can kill me?”

James set his jaw; out of the corner of his eye, Sirius saw Dorcas move her hand toward Marlene’s waist. “I don’t miss.”

The arrow went straight for Riddle’s face—he batted it away easily, but Dorcas was already in motion. Sirius only caught a glimpse of dark metal before Riddle roared in pain as a long cut opened from his cheek to the top of his neck. Inky blood dripped onto his desk next to the Wildland dagger. His breathing grew heavy, though he made no move to touch the blade as he whirled to face Sirius with hellfire eyes. “Where is your brother?”

“Exactly where he belongs,” Sirius snarled through gritted teeth. “Far away from you.”

“He hates you.”

“Maybe. But at least he doesn’t fear you anymore.”

Riddle’s chest heaved with fury before he began to laugh, hysterical and bone-chilling; Sirius grabbed Marlene’s hand and squeezed, but only felt her fingers twitch in response. A loud rustling noise filled the room and his ears popped as Riddle’s dark robes warped, spreading across the floor and bulging around his limbs in strange places—he tilted his head toward the ceiling and green scales cascaded down his skin before devouring him whole.

Within moments, a massive snake’s head stared down at them. Its long body curled around the entire office, scraping against the cold floor. “But you fear me,” Riddle hissed. His tongue forked between his teeth and he struck; Sirius barely dodged the bite and the snake’s nose slammed into the wall, sending a cloud of dust up as a heavy block of stone broke free and fell into the courtyard twenty feet below.

Riddle bared his teeth and reared back, but James darted forward and snatched the dagger off the desk, diverting his attention. Another strike—another dodge. The wall wobbled again, then groaned as the entire room gave way beneath the snake’s weight.

Sirius threw himself over Remus, yanking James back by his waistband as the tower crumbled to bits with an ear-splitting crash. Below them, screams and the sound of splintering wood filled the air. Dust scratched at his eyes as he opened them—the far side of Riddle’s office was gone, leaving only a small ledge between them and the open air.

“How do we get down?” Peter called, coughing as he checked over his shoulder. “It’s too dangerous to go back.”

“Is Marlene alright?” Sirius asked as he slowly sat up. Remus was pale with shock and his breaths were shallow, but at least he had no free-bleeding injuries besides his nose and ears.

Marlene tried to sit up and swallowed a hiss as more blood dripped over her hands. “I’m—I’ll be fine. Just need to catch my breath.”

“Stay down,” Dorcas said. She met Sirius’ eyes and ice slipped down his spine at the fear on her face. “We need to get out of here. f*ck killing Riddle, f*ck the Death Eaters, f*ck his stupid army.”

Below them, a scraping sound sent goosebumps through Sirius’ whole body; he watched in frozen fear as the snake reappeared over the edge of the ruined floor. Another stone crumbled down and a small noise escaped Lily’s lips as she backed away.

“Lucky, lucky, lucky,” Riddle tsked, though the sound was strange around his fangs. He drew back and opened his mouth; green slime dripped out and smoked as it touched the shattered tiles. Sirius chanced a look down and immediately regretted it—the drop made him dizzy, and he scooted further from the edge.

“It blocked the door,” Lily said under her breath without taking her eyes off the snake.

Sirius steeled himself and glanced down again; sure enough, the pile of rubble clogged the front entrance to the palace. Small favors, he thought ruefully. We’ll be eaten by a demon snake, but at least the Death Eaters can’t get to us if we manage to get out.

“Remus, can you stand?” he asked as quietly as he could. Riddle’s iridescent eyes flickered between all of them, still as statues. Remus nodded, and Sirius curled an arm around his waist. “Marlene, hold your breath. Go!”

Dorcas was on her feet in half a second, leading them down the stairwell once again as she and Peter half-carried Marlene between them. Drops of blood spattered every other step and Sirius hoped with every ounce of his strength that he hadn’t accidentally killed one of his best friends right then and there.

Remus got his feet under him just as the snake smashed through the stone behind them—its fangs missed James’ back by a narrow margin and Sirius’ heart leaped into his throat. “Don’t stop running!” James ordered, giving him a shove.

A cloud of dust exploded in front of him as the snake attacked once again, splitting their group in half. Someone shouted and Sirius cracked an eye open--a shallow pit sat where the stairs had once been, filled with fine white dust that glimmered in the growing sunlight. The deep green of Riddle’s scales rippled past the opening and for a moment, Sirius couldn’t breathe; he felt Remus go rigid next to him and James’ hand carefully curled around his shoulder, pulling him back.

Ten feet ahead, Peter and Dorcas lowered Marlene against the wall. Lily motioned them forward, keeping a nervous eye on the gap as she hauled the pieces of their barricade out of the way. Come on! she mouthed. Sirius reached up and tapped James’ hand.

“Now.”

The three of them leapt forward, skidding on the gritty stones in a blur of adrenaline before crashing through the door at the base of the stairs and tumbling into the hall. Color had come back to Remus’ cheeks sometime during the chase—that’s a good sign, Sirius thought as the seven of them careened down the hall past several astonished guards. Nobody was left in the kitchen when they burst into it, but the back door was wide open and they didn’t stop running until their feet hit the hard cobblestone of the courtyard. The gate was still open. They had a chance.

A screeching roar set off every flight response in Sirius’ body and he heard Lily scream; half a second later, the world turned upside down as a huge section of the snake’s body came down in front of him. Everything went blurry—his ears rang and fog crept into his mind as he groaned, trying desperately to keep his eyes open. His whole body pulsed with a dull ache and his head lolled to the left.

James’ bow was snapped in half a few feet from his hand. Pieces of the courtyard had scraped his face and chest, forming small rivulets of blood that clotted in the dust. Remus was curled on his side, pale and still.

Sirius’ stomach dropped. His nightmare flooded back and filled his lungs, choking him with dust and fear--Marlene, bleeding out. Dorcas would be next, and he wouldn’t be able to save Peter, and then Lily would die by his own hand--

“—ius?” He choked out a breath as Peter’s face swam into focus. “Sirius, can you hear me?”

He nodded and spat a mouthful of dirt out. No. He would never let that dream come true as long as there was air in his lungs. James groaned, blinking his eyes open, only to let out a wounded sound when he saw the wreckage of his bow.

Across the courtyard, Riddle was watching them. Waiting.

Sirius knew they were a pathetic sight—Marlene was propped against some of the rubble, barely conscious and greying by the second as Dorcas kept pressure on her side. Lily stood before the snake with her axe drawn, though she was barely taller than three of his scales stacked end to end. The rest of them were scattered in various states of disarray. He drew his sword and staggered upright. “This ends now, Riddle.”

“Indeed, it does,” the king hissed with an imitation of a grin.

Civilians gaped out of their windows and Sirius shook his head at a small family huddled in the wreckage. “You should leave while you still can. He’s not worth your lives.”

“Playing hero, are we?”

James dragged himself to his feet with Remus in tow. “It’s called being a decent person, not that you’d know anything about it. Seven against one aren’t bad odds, eh?”

Riddle threw his scaly head back and laughed, fangs gleaming in the sun. Behind him, rubble-dust shifted in the air--like roaches, Bellatrix and her crew picked over the wreckage of the wall of the keep. Sirius’ heart sank. A forked tongue flickered forth. “Your odds are much worse than that, little royals.”

“I really thought this couldn’t get any worse,” Remus sighed, rubbing the bruised bridge of his nose. Darkness shadowed his eyes; a bit of dried blood still decorated the corner of his mouth, and Sirius tried to ignore the stab of hurt at the sight. “I don’t suppose anyone has an extra sword?”

“You should take Marlene and find Regulus." Sirius' throat constricted at the thought of separation, but Bellatrix was getting closer and she would not touch another part of his family while he still drew breath. “Neither of you can fight right now.”

“I’m not leaving until it’s done,” Marlene argued, even as she leaned heavily on Dorcas. “We didn’t come this far to split up.”

Sirius took Remus’ hand, committing the molten amber of his eyes to memory. If he was going to die here, he wanted that to be the last thing he knew. “Remus, please.”

His pale throat bobbed. “I don’t want to leave you.”

“Come back when it’s done.” The snake began inching forward and he tightened his grip. “This is not goodbye.”

Remus kissed him hard, cradling his jaw like he was something precious before stepping away and looping his arms under Marlene’s back and knees. For all her fiery words, she didn’t have the strength to struggle as he lifted her. A thin green line crept up the side of her neck and Sirius forced down his nausea. Saving Remus by making him watch Marlene die might have been a crueler thing to do than letting him face a hero's death. His ribs throbbed where he had hit the courtyard; the snake's scales scraped across piles of destruction. A hero's death might be more painful, after all.

“Let them go,” Lily called. “They’re already wounded.”

“Why should that stop me?” Riddle hacked out a laugh. More poison sizzled on the ground. “Fresh meat is fresh meat.”

“James, take this,” Dorcas said under her breath, handing him her bow and quiver. She drew her spear, flexing her hands around the sturdy shaft. “On my count, aim for the eye.”

James nocked an arrow, but didn't take his eyes off Riddle. “He already fell for this once.”

“I’m not after him this time.” Sirius braced himself and saw the others do the same—Dorcas had not led them astray yet. Her knuckles bled over fine polished wood. “Remus, do you know how to ride a horse?”

His nose twitched and he readjusted his hold on Marlene. "Can't be too hard."

“Just keep your heels down and don’t drop my wife," she muttered before she zeroed in on Riddle again. “Go!”

James loosed the arrow—as predicted, Riddle whipped around and knocked it aside, but he aimed another faster than Sirius could blink and the second lodged in its neck. The snake screeched, bearing down on them even faster than before.

The king was done playing with his food.

Sirius’ sword bounced off the thick skin on his first few swings, but he managed to wedge it beneath a scale and pry it partway up before wrenching the blade out with his heart in his throat. Losing his only weapon this early in the game was a death sentence. Riddle coiled around the courtyard, twisting and writhing as he snapped at them to no avail. The snake’s sheer size left him at a disadvantage, as long as they kept moving.

Clattering hoofbeats echoed off the half-shattered walls and Sirius turned, bewildered, as Dorcas and Peter freed the warhorses from the stable. They fled in a stampede, whinnying and stumbling on the cobblestones. Dorcas swung onto a chestnut's bare back and took another by the bridle to hurry it to Remus and Marlene. “Dorcas, when we get out of here, we’re having a conversation about communication!” Remus called as he hoisted Marlene onto the horse’s back and climbed clumsily behind her. Dorcas just smiled and smacked its well-groomed rump, sending it off at a gallop.

Sirius slashed his sword across Riddle’s side and opened a thin cut, but it barely caught the snake’s attention before he spotted Remus’ horse running for the gates. “After them!” he ordered, diving at the Death Eaters until they sprinted forward. Dorcas cursed and charged at a full gallop—they scattered and she wheeled back around for a second attack. Her spear, which Sirius had always considered a little unwieldy for ground combat, was the perfect length to bear reckoning from horseback. It gleamed in the daylight like a torch against shadow.

“You four, after the beast!” Bellatrix commanded, though she seemed hesitant to challenge the sharpness of Dorcas' weapons or the reach of her arm. “The rest of you, come with me!”

"You go no further!" Dorcas cried, rearing up in front of the loose pack; Bellatrix stumbled out of range of the horse's hooves. Her long knife nearly slipped from her fingers on a sloppy slash. Through the sweat dripping into his eyes, Sirius saw Remus and Marlene growing more distant.

Lily and Peter had joined forces near Riddle’s tail, hacking away with all their strength. Wherever the snake went, he left a smear of green-tinged blood that bubbled and hissed. James rolled away from a strike just in time for another tower to collapse, obscuring him in the ensuing cloud of sandy rubble. Sirius took off at a sprint as adrenaline flashed through him. “Jamie!”

“I’m alright!” a distant voice answered.

Shouts echoed down the valley and the rumble of hooves grew nearer. “They closed the gate!” Remus shouted, clinging to Marlene and the horse’s reins with white knuckles. Her eyes fluttered shut and he gave her a shake until they opened again, hooded and dark. “Come on, Maz, you’re not dying here.”

Dorcas slashed her spear through the Death Eaters again as Sirius turned his attention to the snake’s body. They would wear themselves out before any true damage was done, and then it wouldn’t matter how well they evaded Riddle. He would catch them in the end. “Lily, go left!” he yelled over the commotion. His raw throat burned. “James, do you trust me?”

“Of course I do!”

“Then climb up to that ledge and start shooting!”

“Are you f*cking crazy?”

“Yes! Do you still trust me?”

A blob of life in the dusty haze, James began to climb. Sirius scanned the wreckage of the courtyard--scales were scattered in Riddle’s wake where they had been hacked off or ripped by chunks of stone, along with pieces of the keep that stood just a bit too close to the action. Scales…

He snatched one off the ground and hurried to the nearest stretch of writhing body, waiting until Riddle was steady enough to get a clear shot. Then he braced his back foot against a piece of someone's house and jammed the scale up hard.

Blood, black as night with glimmers of iridescence, flowed over his hands like a burst dam. The snake howled and thrashed; the scale’s sharp edge sliced both of Sirius’ palms and he jerked back with a yelp of pain, clenching his hands on reflex and narrowly missing the whipcrack of a tail flying past as Riddle rounded on him.

“You,” he roared, bearing down on Sirius with the force of a runaway carriage.

f*ck. Sirius turned and ran as fast as his feet would carry him, zigzagging back and forth as the snake tried to snap him up in its gaping maw. “James! New plan!”

Lily was still getting to her feet when he barreled past her—caught in the crossfire, if he had to guess by her skinned knees--and narrowly missed being tackled as he dodged a pile of splintered wood. “Where the hell are you going?” she shouted.

“I don’t know yet! Use the scales, they can break—sh*t!” Sirius dove under the carcass of a building as the ground rolled beneath him from Riddle’s impact. His breaths were shallow, and every muscle burned. He flexed his hands and bit down hard on the inside of his lip as fresh blood dripped down to his wrists. Holding his sword would be agonizing. Through a crack in the stone, he watched Dorcas fend off the Death Eaters while Remus took Marlene’s sword and slashed at anyone who came too close to their nickering horse. Two against seven. His stomach heaved. They’ll never make it.

Sirius paused. Two against…six. Where’s—

A hand closed around the back of his shirt and dragged him backwards from the rubble, slamming him to the ground and pinning his sleeves into the dirt with dual blades. “There you are,” Bellatrix sneered. She dug her knee into his bruised midriff hard enough to rip a cry from him, but his sword was far out of reach. “Scream all you like," she cooed. "Nobody’s paying attention.”

Over her shoulder, Lily and Peter had distracted the snake by jamming several loose scales back into its body blade-edge first; a thin layer of oily smog covered the ground where its blood continued to smoke. James leaped from ledge to ledge, dodging each strike by a hair, though Sirius could see his energy waning. He didn't hear me. The thought struck him like lightning.He's waiting for my cue.

“No!” Remus’ voice broke and Sirius’ whole body flooded with terror. “Stay with me, Marlene! Stay with me, you’re alright!”

“You f*cking cowards!” Dorcas drove them back again, blazing and radiant as she turned circles around the Death Eaters before taking off toward the gate. “Come and get me, if you think you can!”

The four left standing took the bait. Sirius didn’t see much after that, because Bellatrix’s backhanded slap made his vision fizz with black and the ringing sound deafened him to all but her sandpaper voice.

“Eyes on me, baby cousin.” She bared her teeth in a cruel smile. A silver knife shone in her hand, no bigger than a letter opener and coated in the same shimmering slime that oozed from the snake's mouth. “I want you to know death when you see it. Your friends will meet it soon enough. It’s a pity you didn’t stay with the family—we would have taught you how to wage bloody war and win.”

The blade came down.

Wet warmth dripped onto Sirius' forehead from his free-bleeding hand. His shoulder screamed, but the pain hardly registered as he pushed up, up, up, his bruised forearm braced against her armored one, forcing her away. His heart hammered in his ears and bitter iron tinged the back of his mouth. Bellatrix shrieked as his shin found her kidney and flipped her onto her back; with one sharp motion, he wrenched the knife away and shoved it between her upper ribs. “I did stay with my family," he said lowly, trembling in every limb. Fresh air billowed into his shirt through the tear where it had ripped free and stoked the hellfire he had tempered for so very long. "You tried to take them away. Our price has always been blood."

She snarled, clawing at his arms and her side like a wildcat, but it was too late. Sickly green crept up the veins of her neck, staining her perfect skin. He held her until her eyes rolled back and she went still with a half-finished gasp. The poison was quick, deadly, and unforgiving, just as she had been. He had barely managed to stand when something massive crashed behind him, followed by a familiar cry of pain.

Sirius didn’t pause, didn’t think, didn't hesitate a second longer over Bellatrix's body--he turned and ran headfirst into the chaos of half the palace wall falling down with unsteady legs and single-minded determination. "James!"

“Sirius!” Lily called somewhere to his right.

He tripped over rubble and forgotten scales, blind but for vague shapes through the dust. Foggy and filled with shadows, just like his nightmare. Sweat cooled on his skin. “Jamie, where are you?”

Another shout, closer this time. He shielded his eyes and followed the sound of frantic muttering and heavy breathing, then felt his world tilt on its axis at the sight that greeted him in the hollow of a broken door. James was on his back with Lily by his side; a slow pool of blood spread steadily under one of his legs. “Sirius,” he forced out through a clenched jaw as Lily wrapped a torn piece of her pants around the wound.

“I’m here.” A scream caught halfway up Sirius’ throat as he gripped James' hand. Riddle was still flailing beneath heavy blocks of stone and he could hear the sounds of battle, but it was like he was underwater. Drowning. First Marlene, then Remus, and now James. What did I do to deserve this? “I’m here, Jamie, it’s okay.”

“The others?”

“Dorcas drew the Death Eaters off. Bellatrix is dead. Remus is with Marlene, and I don’t know where Peter went.”

James’ face was twisted with pain. “Are they alright?”

Stay with me, Marlene! “I don’t know.”

“Riddle?”

“Trapped."For now. James' smooth brown skin was turning grey near his lips and eyes. It had become very difficult to breathe, suddenly. "Do you still have the dagger?”

James shook his head, then winced at the motion. “Dropped it when I was jumping.”

“I’m so sorry.” The tears in his eyes burned as they mixed with grit. “I was trying to draw him closer so he’d bring the wall down on himself and still give you time to get away.”

“I had time,” James managed, wincing. “I just wasn’t quick enough. ‘s just a scratch.”

Blood was already soaking through Lily's bandage. She met Sirius' gaze with nothing but fear.

"You'll be okay." His voice broke and he took a harsh breath. Six years was not long enough. "I can't do this without you."

James exhaled shakily, the corner of his jaw ticking with pain for a moment before he fumbled for Sirius' hand and squeezed it tight. "Funny, I was going to say the same thing about you."

Sirius swiped at his eyes with the back of his hand, uncaring of how the dried blood there made the tears worse. "I'll follow you through all of it," he swore, gripping James' hand until his knuckles went white. "I always have and I always will."

"Sirius--"

"You can't stop me."

James sniffed. "That's not how this works."

"Then you're not allowed to go, because I'm not leaving you until all this is over."And then I'll go where you go, just as I have since the moment you dragged me out of the darkness.

The ground cracked as Riddle broke free at last, arching high above them and steaming with rage.

James was quiet for a moment. His hazel eyes reflected the open sky that spread higher and further than Riddle could ever hope to reach. His lips pressed tight together and he tugged Sirius’ hand. “Help me up. If I’m going to die, I’m going to do it on my feet.”

“You’re not going to die,” Lily said fiercely. They hoisted him up, using Sirius' sword more as a crutch than a weapon. A shadow blurred in the mist to Riddle’s left and Dorcas galloped to their side, covered in sweat and specks of blood; Remus and Marlene followed her, weak-kneed as they slid off their mount, but blessedly alive. More green mixed with the pallor of Marlene’s face—she forced her eyes open, but Remus was practically carrying her, and her longsword shook in her hand until Peter limped from the rubble and steadied her with a hand on her back. Sirius would never see that color the same.

“What a lovely garden party,” Riddle said drily, swaying back and forth in a hypnotic rhythm. “I was getting tired of chasing you around, but you’ve arranged yourselves into quite a nice little mouthful.”

“Turn back into your human form and come with us to face the council for punishment--” James paused to catch his breath and transferred the weight off his bad leg. “--or we’ll kill you for your crimes against the land.”

“In a few minutes you’ll be dead, and I’ll have a wonderful meal.”

Marlene raised the point of her sword a few inches off the ground. “We’re not giving up.”

“It would be an easier death if you did.”

“I didn’t come here to die easy,” she spat.

Riddle narrowed his eyes. “When I win, nobody will remember your names.”

“But they’ll remember what we did,” Lily rasped, hoarse from shouting and breathing the gritty air. “They’ll remember that we refused to stand down. I don’t care if people know my name, as long as they keep fighting against you.”

Riddle bared his fangs in a mockery of a smile. “How heroic.”

There was nowhere to run, and nowhere they could all hide. James was weakening by the second. Marlene would be lucky to make it five more minutes. Sirius was too tired to be afraid anymore. He reached out and laced his fingers with Remus’, feeling his hold tighten as Riddle reared back.

Time, he thought as daylight shone over the distant mountains. It wasn't so long ago that they held hands in the lee of one just like it, skidding over ice with their futures ahead. I wanted time with you.

Lily’s breath hitched as Riddle’s mouth came rushing toward them and he gripped her shoulder in a last-ditch attempt at comfort.

The encompassing darkness never came. The courtyard was silent, and then erupted into noise.

The massive snake wailed like nothing Sirius had ever heard before, writhing in agony as light exploded from the middle of its body. One ray hit Remus in the chest and he dropped to the ground; the direwolf shook itself out in a puff of tawny fur as the world shone in technicolor sun. It faded after a moment, leaving two prone bodies in the ruined courtyard. Sirius' sword clattered to the ground and he ran like he had never run before.

No. Please, I'm begging you, not him. Not now.

“Reg? Reg!” Sirius' knees smarted from the hard ground as he fumbled to feel for a pulse. The black fabric on Regulus' left arm was completely burned away, and the blister-ridden skin beneath steamed. “Come on, Regulus, look at me!”

Regulus groaned. “Sir'us?”

“Stay awake. Just focus on me.” Sirius’ hands shook. It wasn’t right. It wasn't fair. Riddle was dead. Bellatrix was dead. They were all supposed to go home and be happy. Regulus--

Regulus wasn’t even supposed to be there.

"Don’t you dare close your eyes," he ordered. No signs of the green poison stained his arm, but so many layers of skin had been shorn off that he couldn't even see the black tattoo anymore. Regulus' cloak and uniform had no visible clasps; Sirius settled for ripping the fabric straight down the seam.

“Tired," came a weak mumble.

“No, you’re f*cking not.” He peeled away the sleeve and made a strangled noise at the smoking wounds.

“Sleep?”

“You can sleep when you’re dead, and that’s not going to happen on my watch.” Regulus’ eyes fluttered closed and Sirius gave him another light shake until he blinked them open again. “There you go, good job. Deep breaths.”

“Hurts.”

A physical pain lanced through Sirius’ heart. “I know, but just—just hold on a little longer. You’re the smart one, remember? Who taught you to be so stupid?”

The edge of Regulus’ lips turned up. “You did.”

“Yeah, well, leave the snake-stabbing to me next time. The oldest gets the glory, that’s the rule.”

“Couldn’t let you die like a hero yet.” A shiver wracked his shoulders and Sirius pulled him up to lay across his lap, careful not to touch his arm. Regulus curled into him like he had when they were small and one of their mother's parties ran too far past his bedtime--his breath caught under Sirius' hand in a few jagged inhales. And then it stopped. Regulus' hand slipped back onto the ground, limp. Sirius squeezed his eyes shut. He was burning, burning alive.

"No." It tore from him, a plea, a curse, a prayer. Of all his nightmares, he couldn't imagine a worse one than this. He wanted the snake tattoo. He wanted the cloak and the poison. He wanted everything that had been foisted on Regulus when he failed to be the dutiful son, something that had once seemed like a fate worse than death but was all he craved as he held his brother for the first time in six years. Not the last. He would never say it was the last.

The body in his arms gave a hard jerk and a pointed elbow found home in Sirius' bruised thigh, drawing a shout of pain from him. "Off," Regulus blurted, shoving at him. "Off, off, off--"

Sirius released him faster than if he was holding a live viper. "What?"

Regulus shook his arm with a whine of panic, frantically trying to dislodge the faint blue glow encasing the wound. Sirius looked down and saw the same covering his own wounds as they stitched closed. Marlene. He whipped around and nearly slammed face-first into Lily’s legs; at some point in his addled attempts at saving his recklessstupidperfect baby brother, the rest of them had crossed the courtyard to stand by him. The rush of affection he felt then was nothing compared to the relief that overrode everything else in his body when he saw Marlene staring at the shiny scar that used to be a gaping hole in her side.

“Is it done?” he asked. James—who was no longer bleeding from the gash in his thigh, and Sirius' heart heaved at the sight—tossed the Wildland dagger onto the ground and sat down hard. Sirius couldn't even cry as they all fell together in more of a pile than a hug. He dragged Regulus over and buried his face in Remus' neck, feeling warm lips press against his temple.

“Congratulations,” a low voice chuckled. Sirius cautiously raised his head and Dumbledore winked at him. “You succeeded in your quest.”

“Did you…?” Marlene gestured to her side and he nodded. She gave him a look of tentative approval. “Thank you.”

“You saved many lives today. It was the least I could do.” Something sad crossed his face when he looked at the king’s body. “Tom was an old enemy, and an older friend. While I am not sad to see him go, it pains me that it had to be in such a violent manner.”

“Can we go home now?” Peter asked, sounding as exhausted as Sirius felt. His adrenaline finally decided to call it quits, and it was all he could do to not keel over then and there for a nap.

“I’m afraid not. You performed admirably today, but there is one final task to be done. The armies of Silvalith are still moving toward the Middle Kingdom.” Dumbledore hesitated, then smiled kindly. “However, I think you have more than earned a day of rest. Some very important people are waiting for you, after all.”

Chapter 12: Home; An Interlude

Chapter Text

It was surprisingly difficult to walk with a direwolf plastered to the side of one leg, but Sirius would be damned before he made a move to push him away, even if Remus’ ribcage bumped painfully against his bruised thigh and their uneven steps made him stumble once in a while. He wasn’t alone, either—Dorcas’ hand was tight in the thick fur of Remus’ neck as if daring anyone to take him away.

Dumbledore’s magic may have stitched the worst of their wounds and healed the poison coursing through James and Marlene, but Sirius still felt like he had been run over by a carriage, tossed in a river, and then tap-danced on for about six hours. He couldn’t recall the last time he didn’t have a headache.

The spooky spell-casting hadn’t ended there—with a wave of his hand and a promise to return in the morning, Dumbledore had transported them to the edge of the woods; according to Regulus mere moments before he passed out, the old wizard was the one who found him at their hiding place and brought him to the courtyard.

“Are we there yet?” Marlene asked around a jaw-cracking yawn as she leaned her head on Peter’s shoulder. He hoisted her higher on his back with a slight grimace while Dorcas squeezed her hand. It would take lots of rest for the poison’s aftereffects to subside, and she had lost a lot of blood.

“Not far,” Peter panted, squinting ahead of them. The forest looked greener, more lush—Sirius wondered if it was a side effect of the magic explosion upon Riddle’s death, or simply their whole worldview shifting. He felt different. Lighter.

Regulus mumbled something and Sirius shushed him softly, ignoring the burning of his muscles. Regulus was heavier than he had been all those years ago; not as strong as Sirius, but more than the waifish child he had left behind. He had almost lost him twice now; there would not be a third. His family was safe, and that was all that mattered.

Beside him, Remus' large ears pricked up. His tail began to wag and he huffed, breath steaming in the morning chill; there was a rustle in the underbrush, and then another wolf appeared ahead. It was skinnier than Remus, as if it hadn’t eaten in several days, and its fur was a rich chestnut that caught the sunlight as Remus bolted toward it with a loud bark. They both transformed halfway and collided in a tight embrace—Hope swayed back and forth, pressing a hard kiss to Remus’ forehead before her eyes fell on the rest of them and her tears spilled over.

“We’re alright,” Remus assured her, his voice thick with relief. “Everyone’s alright, mum.”

“We were so afraid,” she managed, opening her arms to pull as many of them as she could into a hug. “The wizard found you, then?”

“Just in time,” Lily croaked, clearing her throat with a wince.

“We heard these horrible noises, and a crash, and—and then the old man appeared and said Regulus needed to leave. He didn’t give any explanation except that you were in danger, and we weren’t allowed to help.”

“Is everyone else okay?” James ventured. A tremor ran through him when Hope touched his cheek gently, and he closed his eyes.

“Safe and sound, though worried sick about all of you.”

“You found the camp, right?” Sirius asked as she led them through the underbrush. “We had supplies there, food and water and blankets.”

Regulus made a grumpy noise and cracked one eye open, tucking his face into the crook of Sirius’ shoulder. “You told me where to take them. I’m not an idiot.”

It took every ounce of Sirius’ meager self-control to suppress a smile. “Sorry.”

“Poison, ‘s making me sleepy.” He pulled a face and went a little more boneless in Sirius’ exhausted arms; it was a miracle he didn’t drop him right there in the road. “Don’t like it. Wanna be awake.”

“Well, you’re going to sleep right now so you’re better in the—”

“Did he say poison?” Hope interrupted.

Remus shot Sirius a wide-eyed look, as if it was his fault the snake had extra awful bonus effects. “Dumbledore healed it. They’ll just have to sleep it off.”

“They, as in, more than one of you?”

“Uh, well—”

A campfire flickered in the morning mist ahead; something clattered to the ground. “They’re back!”

Sheer euphoria dulled every bit of leftover pain in Sirius’ body as a tumble of voices followed uneven footsteps, and his throat constricted when Euphemia and Fleamont appeared in a thick copse of trees. Dorcas sprinted forward and nearly collapsed in her fathers’ arms, all three of them already in tears. A muffled sob slipped from James’ mouth and Sirius staggered against him—finally, they were surrounded by real, actual adults who knew what they were doing and talked over each other while someone wiped the tears from Sirius’ cheeks as they began to fall. The knot of terror and guilt and fierce, raging hope in his chest began to ease.

“I’m sorry,” he gasped as Euphemia helped him lay Regulus by the fire and folded him in her arms. “I didn’t want to leave you, but it was too dangerous and—"

“Shh, love, you’re alright,” she soothed. It was ridiculous to think the lot of them smelled like anything other than dirt and blood, but he swore the scent of sandalwood lingered in the breeze.

A hand closed around his upper arm and James dragged him over, never taking his face out of his father’s shoulder as the four of them huddled together. “My boys.” Fleamont’s voice broke, and Sirius felt a broad hand card through his hair.

“I thought we lost you,” James whispered hoarsely. “I thought you were gone forever, and—and I was so scared, dad—”

“Everything is going to be just fine,” Fleamont said, gathering them impossibly closer. Somehow, Sirius believed it.

James sniffled. “I broke my bow.”

“Jamie,” Euphemia half-laughed. “Sweetheart, we don’t care about the bow.”

“We still have a war to stop, and I’ll need it—”

“What you need is sleep,” she said gently. “Both of you. You’ve been so brave, and we are so proud of you.”

Sirius allowed himself to be led to the campfire and curled around Regulus; the world went a little fuzzy as Fleamont laid a comforting hand over his forehead. He didn’t have to worry about the others anymore—he wasn’t sure he had the strength. The exhaustion was too great to fight and there was simply too much for his mind to process to bother staying awake. All of it was too much.

Sirius dreamed of home.

Turquoise waves galloped across pale sand and gulls wheeled high above, screeching as they dove and played. Dorcas sprinted past the palm trees and flopped onto her back when the direwolf faceplanted in the sand; Remus, golden and freckled, was already laughing when he changed back.

Marlene basked on a thin blanket with all her scars glittering in the sunlight as she chatted with Lily and watched James try to teach Peter how to steer. “Come on, Sirius!” he shouted with a grin, his wild hair catching the wind below the buffeting sails.

Sirius closed his eyes and breathed in the salty air, then took off running into the surf. His fingertips had just brushed the side of the skiff when a warm wave washed over his head and the rushing water turned to crackling and popping mere feet away.

He jerked upright with a sharp inhale and reached toward his waist on instinct, only to find his sheath empty. A blanket tangled his limbs and he kicked at it for a second before his mind cleared; next to him, Regulus slumbered on while the sun neared early afternoon. The panic slowed. Reality trickled back.

Annette and Rashid talked in low voices as they patched a few of the shabbier blankets from their packs—she met Sirius’ eye with a reassuring smile and tilted her head toward the tent, where their weapons all laid in a pile outside the front flap. “Didn’t want any incidents,” she said.

Sirius declined to tell her they had all been sleeping fully armed for several weeks now. Somehow, he didn’t think that would go over very well.

A quick look around the campsite told him he was the first one awake, and he took a moment to let his racing heart slow. James drooled a little while Peter and Marlene snored in harmony; Dorcas muttered in her sleep when Lily turned over and spread an arm all the way from under her blanket. Remus slept with one arm under his head and one in the place Sirius had laid, just a few inches from his hand.

Sirius traced his slender fingers carefully, following the veins all the way to his elbow. Remus’ nose twitched, but he didn’t wake; even coated in dried blood and grime, he was absolutely breathtaking. Sirius stood with utmost care, tiptoeing through the minefield of his friends’ limbs and dry twigs, and retrieved a canteen before settling into his old spot once more. The cool water washed the grime and dust from his throat—before he knew it, half the canteen was gone and the world had come into much clearer focus. His stomach and head panged with hunger and he winced.

“Here.” Lyall passed him a hunk of roasted squirrel and he practically inhaled it, barely pausing to savor the taste. Which, to be honest, was probably for the best.

The second squirrel was gone as fast as the first; midway through licking the last of the grease off his thumb, Sirius remembered who he was talking to and froze. He had never actually had a conversation with the king. A beat of awkward silence passed between them. “Thanks.”

Lyall kept staring at him, as if he was trying to map Sirius’ face. “You looked hungry.”

“I was.” Pull it together.

“You have a little…” Lyall gestured to the side of his head and Sirius touched his temple—his fingers came away crimson, but he felt no open wound.

“Oh! Oh, right, sorry.” He pulled his sleeve over his wrist to scrub at the blood matting his hair and made a face at the itch on his skin. “That was from my cousin, I think. Maybe rubble. Thanks for pointing it out.”

“No problem. Your cousin?”

“Bellatrix, the one with the knives and insanity. She’s been trying to kill me since I was…twelve? Birthrights matter a lot around here. Really dodged a throwing star with that one, eh?”

From the look on the king’s face, the joke didn’t land. Sirius bit the inside of his lip as Lyall turned back to the fire. “I didn’t recognize your name at the council, but I remember hearing that you ran away. Six years ago, was it?”

“Yeah.” He tucked his hands under his thighs when the cold wind bit through his shirtsleeves. “I didn’t run away, though. They disowned me.”

“I see.”

“It’s alright, they lied to Regulus, too. Not great for a family’s reputation to boot their heir.”

“But you still spoke out against King Riddle. Reckless, certainly, but brave.” Lyall gave a grudging nod, and his eyes flickered to Remus. “It’s good to know you won’t cut and run.”

The dots finally connected. “Oh. No, sir, I wouldn’t—no. There was never a chance of that.”

“Good.”

“Da, I really hope this conversation isn’t what I think it is,” a groggy voice grumbled. Sirius and Lyall both looked down at Remus, who had narrowed one eye at his father as he slowly woke, stretching to squeeze Sirius’ hand. “Hey.”

He returned the gesture, smiling even though it made his chapped lips sting. “Hey. How’re you feeling?”

Remus shot him a look of playful disbelief and propped himself on his elbows, making a face at the mess on his hands and arms. “Blegh.”

“We all need baths.”

“I don’t even remember the last time I had a bath,” Remus laughed under his breath, scanning the rest of the campsite. His face relaxed when he saw the others and he leaned his temple against Sirius’ arm. “They’re alright, then?”

“Think so.”

“And Regulus?”

“Sleeping, thankfully. I don’t think anyone would appreciate him running his mouth more than necessary.”

Lyall chuckled and anxiety slipped back into Sirius’ veins. He must have made some sort of face, because Remus rolled his eyes and sat up the rest of the way. “You’re scaring him, Da.”

“I’m laughing!” Lyall protested. “And last I checked, I’m not the one soaked in blood.”

Despite his teasing, Sirius could hear the undercurrent of worry. Remus raised an eyebrow at him with a smile playing at his lips. “Very little of it is mine. The others are getting used to it by now.”

“Still unsettling,” Dorcas mumbled. “Stop fidgeting, you woke me up. ‘s it my turn for watch yet?”

Sirius hesitated for a second. “We’re not doing watch, remember?”

Her eyes snapped open. “Why n—oh. Sorry, thought I was dreaming for a second.”

“Morning, Dorcas.” Lyall’s eyes crinkled at the edges as he handed her two cooked squirrels. “It’s good to see you again.”

“Next time, I hope it’s under better circ*mstances,” she said around a mouthful of meat. “Ugh, I need a bath. Don’t want to leave until everyone’s up, though.”

“We’ll keep an eye out. Sixteen, in fact.” Lyall’s joke hung in the air for a second before Sirius started snickering, which set all three of them off; Remus tried to hide it in a groan, but his eyes shone with happiness.

“That was terrible,” he said as he stood and brushed his trousers off, reaching down to help Sirius to his feet. “I’m telling mum.”

“She’ll take my side and you know it. River’s to the south, about a hundred meters.”

“Thanks. Sir,” Sirius tacked on awkwardly. Remus muttered something under his breath and pulled him toward the forest by the hand. As soon as there was a decent bit of tree cover, he groaned. “I’m a f*cking idiot.”

“Sir?”

“He’s a king!”

“And I’m a prince! You’ve never called me ‘sir’!”

“That’s different. I could, though, if you wanted me to.”

Remus turned to walk backwards and wrinkled his nose. “Not particularly.”

They laughed together for a moment, and Sirius let himself pretend that this was a normal date in a distant Frystmarkan forest, where they could have actual food and not be on constant high alert. Then the skin between his fingers tugged with dried blood, Remus’ sword calluses scraped his palm, and the illusion was broken. “Really, though, how are you feeling?”

Remus waited a long moment before answering. “I’m…decent. Not dead, which is good. Very, very glad we have people who know what the f*ck our next steps are supposed to be. Not looking forward to explaining every stupid thing we’ve done.”

“You can still change, right?” He stopped walking to pull him close and took his other hand. “I don’t know what happened back there, but it looked…bad.”

Remus’ eyes glazed for a second before clearing, and he swallowed hard. “My people can only shift because of the magic that used to live in Frystmark. Riddle—I don’t know what he did, but he took it away. That’s not supposed to happen. I’ve never felt so....human.”

“Hey,” Sirius said gently, wrapping him in a hug. A harsh breath escaped Remus’ mouth and he clutched the back of Sirius’ shirt like a lifeline. “You’re safe now. He can’t hurt you anymore.”

“It was like nothing I’ve ever felt before. I thought he was going to tear me apart.” A shudder ran down his spine and Sirius smoothed its wake.

“But he didn’t.” He stepped back and rested their foreheads together, kissing his cheek. “I’ll never let them hurt you again, alright?”

Their breaths mingled in the comfortable silence. Sirius felt the air shift. “You’re one of the best people I’ve ever met,” Remus said at last, running his thumbs over Sirius' knuckles. “I’ve known it since the first night.”

“Since you broke into my room?” Sirius teased.

“No, since you let in a dangerous animal just because it sounded cold. Since you listened when it told you to slow down and then closed your eyes, even though it was perfectly capable of taking your hand off in one bite.” Remus nudged their noses together with a smile. “Since you let it into your damn bed in all its fang-filled, wet-dog glory and cuddled it. f*ck, Sirius, I could smell it on you from the moment the door opened. You’re a good person, and I don’t want this to end once we fix everything.”

A lump formed in the back of his throat. “Me, either.”

“I want to know you when we’re not afraid of dying, okay?”

“A picnic, then.” His smile made his cheeks ache in the best way. “No swords, no guards. Just you and me in a field somewhere, or on that lake where you can teach me to skate again and laugh when I fall and bruise myself all over.”

“I won’t let you fall.”

“Too late.”

For once, they kissed without death looming over their heads. Sirius didn’t realize how much he needed it until he leaned in for more, sliding his hands into Remus’ mussed curls and catching his gasp in his mouth. They had no time limit, and nobody was there to intrude on the moment—it was just them, the trees, and the river rushing past.

Every other kiss had been tinged with bitter adrenaline, but Sirius let himself get lost in the slow, easy rock of their newfound rhythm. Remus splayed his hands over his ribs, sliding down to hold his waist and dip him back until they nearly toppled over; they broke apart in a burst of laughter and took off running toward the water, hand-in-hand and fully clothed save for their socks and shoes left abandoned on the riverbank.

Sirius dove under as soon as his thighs dampened, closing his eyes against the roiling current while it scrubbed the dirt from his face in an unrelenting push. He surfaced with a whoop, flipping his hair out of his eyes only to catch a faceful of water and wet fur as the direwolf shook itself out and bounded between rocks.

“You’re the worst!” he shouted with a grin, splashing it with both hands. The wolf barked at him. “You are! That was so rude!”

It tried to climb onto a nearby boulder, only for the algae to give out beneath its scrabbling paws and send it into the water with a yelp; Remus came up half a second later, sputtering and coughing as Sirius howled with laughter. “I didn’t know you were coming up right then!”

“You should’ve seen your face!”

Remus lunged toward him and they both went under; Sirius kept his eyes open that time and watched tawny hair fan out around his face like some sort of water sprite, come straight from a fairytale. He had almost forgotten what Remus looked like free of the marks of their travels.

“You’re f*cking beautiful,” he said as soon as they came up for air, then immediately hauled him in for another kiss. Their teeth bumped once or twice from their wild grins and he shivered in the cold wind of oncoming winter, though Remus’ body heat kept his front as warm as could be.

Their shirts came off a few minutes later; Sirius shamelessly watched the scarred and speckled skin of Remus’ back as he scrubbed grime from the fabric with his tongue between his teeth. He whistled playfully once and received a handful of algae to the face in response. The accompanying vibrant blush made it well worth the trouble. It was easy being around Remus. At the party, all those lifetimes ago, they had been two strangers with a quick-burning spark between them; Sirius still saw that golden prince in his periphery, but when he faced him head on, he saw only Remus.

Remus, who had saved him countless times over the course of their insanely dangerous plans. Remus, who fought by his side and stood next to him as a shield between their friends and the horrors ahead. Remus, who had revealed his deepest secret just to keep him safe. Sirius didn’t know where the future would take them, but he did know part of him irrevocably belonged to the snow prince and his hearth-warm heart.

Peter arrived a quarter of an hour later, while they were washing their trousers in the waist-deep part of the river; James joined them ten minutes after that, and in under an hour all four of them were flat on their backs on top of a large rock as their clothing dried and their teeth chattered.

“Lily is really cool,” James said after a long stretch of silence.

All three of them groaned aloud. “We know.”

“No, I mean—I mean really cool. And super pretty. And so smart.”

“Ask her out, then,” Sirius said without opening his eyes. The sunshine felt unbelievably good on his battered back. “She’ll say yes.”

“You think so?”

“As long as you don’t call her a harvest spirit again, sure.”

Peter heaved a sigh. “Everyone’s pairing up except me. That’s so unfair.”

“Pucker up, Pete.” Sirius made kissy noises at him until both James and Remus smacked him on the arms. “You’ll have better luck with me than Marlene.”

“Marlene?” He wrinkled his nose. “Ew, she’s like my sister.”

“Then I suggest not making a move on her future wife, either.” James’ back popped when he stretched and they all winced in sympathy. “We should head back soon, shouldn’t we?”

“Feels weird being away from the girls for so long,” Sirius agreed. “I miss them. None of you make fun of me in quite the same way.”

Remus scooted over so their sides were pressed together and tugged a stray lock of his hair. “I’ll make fun of you if you want. Now let’s go, get your clothes on.”

“That was so close to the perfect sentence.”

Remus snorted as James and Peter made identical sounds of distress. “Have fun chatting with my da in your underwear, then. I’ll be on the sidelines laughing my ass off, if you need me.”

Sirius had never dressed so quickly.

“So,” Fleamont began sternly as he raised an eyebrow once everyone was bathed, dry, and semi-prepared to discuss topics Sirius would much rather avoid. “First order of business: just because something isn’t treason, doesn’t mean it’s a good idea.”

“You could still be charged for a variety of crimes,” Queen Louise added. “Most of which are punishable by death, especially under Riddle’s government.”

Several of the parents nodded their agreement and Sirius felt something inside him wither and die. “Sirius.” Euphemia leveled him with a look. “You’re thinking awfully hard.”

“Me? No, not at all.” He shoved a hunk of meat in his mouth and winced at the crunch of charcoal on the outside.

She turned to James, who shrank back, before glancing at the rest of them. “Who’d like to start?”

Marlene cleared her throat. “Well, we arrived at Os Anguis a few—”

“From the beginning,” Annette interrupted. “I have several suspicions, and I hope none of them are true.”

“Well…” Marlene trailed off and looked to the rest of them for support, but found none. Sirius continued to stare at the ground. “I guess I’ll start, then, since all of you enjoy watching me suffer. We used a tunnel system to get out of Varghal and nearly got frostbite. There was a village on the other side where we ate and stayed the night.”

Lyall glanced over at Remus. “Hemgard?”

“Yeah. Nobody had heard the news yet.”

“Bellatrix found us on the second day,” Sirius added, scooting over to make room for Regulus and his blanket bundle. “She was the head of the Death Eaters, Riddle’s assassin squad, and they tracked us down. They were planning on killing us, but—”

“But we drove them off,” Marlene finished for him. Sirius felt light pressure on the back of his hand and swallowed down the full truth. “That’s when we found out they weren’t just raiders, and that Silvalith was behind the attack.”

Remus cleared his throat. “I went back to look for you while the others headed toward Lily’s family in a small town south of the border—”

“You went running through assassin-infested woods alone?” Hope was clearly appalled. “What—why?”

“I hoped you were still there. I know it was stupid.” He picked a bit of squirrel meat off the bone, and Sirius skimmed a supportive hand over his lower back. “It was pretty clear that you weren’t, so I was only a day or so behind the others before we met up again.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose. “You’re lucky to be alive.”

Sirius couldn’t help it—he snorted aloud, trying to muffle the sound with his hand. “I’m sorry,” he said when several confused looks landed on him. “I’m sorry, it’s just—that is not even close to the most dangerous thing we did.”

“Not helping,” Dorcas singsonged under her breath.

Both her fathers raised their eyebrows at her. “Care to elaborate?” Rashid asked.

“Should we start with the wizard or the Wildland?” Sirius grinned at James, who was frantically making motions for him to cut it out. It wasn't like they'd get away with more secrets, at that point. “Or maybe Lily’s grand plan to choose the lesser of two evils, which including jumping off a cliff? And we can’t forget the mountains—”

“Shut your mouth or I’ll shut it for you,” Marlene threatened, though he could see a smile twitching at her lips.

Lily put her head in her hands with a groan. “I already apologized.”

“You can’t swim!”

“No sh*t!”

“Please back up,” Louise said, sounding quite distressed. “You were in Bailey?”

“We stayed with my mum for a few days and cleaned up,” Lily explained. “After that, we started on the road to Os Anguis to try and intercept the Death Eaters.”

“But somebody forgot the map.” Marlene gave Remus a pointed look, and he threw his hands in the air in exasperation.

“I was packing the sandwiches, Marlene!”

“We are not having the argument again!” James interrupted, putting a hand on each of their shoulders to prevent any potential loss of life. “Regardless of whose fault it was, we got lost in the woods, Remus almost died, and then we followed a cat to the wizard.”

“I did not almost die—”

“Only because of me!” Sirius protested. Across the fire, Euphemia was rubbing her temple like she had a headache. “But in your defense, it was very dark outside and none of us saw the cliff.”

“You fell off a cliff?” their parents chorused.

“It was a ravine, and Sirius caught me before I could do more than slide a couple inches.”

Lyall stared at them for a long moment. “I’m genuinely worried about the rest of your story if we’re only a week in.”

“Dumbledore’s house was nice,” Peter said. “And very safe.”

“I feel like I shouldn’t have to say this,” Fleamont sighed. “But next time, don’t stay the night in a wizard’s house if you don’t know him. That’s a really good way to get killed or cursed.”

“Oh, no, he was very polite,” James assured him. “I mean, we left first thing in the morning and he gave us loads of information about what we needed for our quest.”

“He also made us split up, but that’s beside the point,” Remus said under his breath.

Sirius’ throat went a little tight at the memory of their last-second goodbyes. “Dorcas, Lily, and James went to the Wildland to find the dagger to kill Riddle, while the rest of us kept moving toward Silvalith to find all of you. There wasn’t enough time for us to do both together.”

Amir’s eyebrows drew together in confusion. “So you were going to catch up to us and then continue on to Os Anguis? That seems like a rapid change of plans based on one night around a stranger.”

Dorcas bit her lip. “At the time, it felt like a good idea. None of us actually wanted to split up, though.”

“Then why did you?”

“We were pretty desperate for any sort of plan,” Sirius said, quieter than before as realization sunk in. They really had been running on sheer dumb luck by that point. “Dumbledore said we wouldn’t catch up to you in time, and that Riddle wouldn’t go with us willingly. We didn’t exactly have a lot of options.”

Fleamont ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry you had to make that decision. All of you.”

James shrugged. “Turned out alright in the end, though. The Wildland wasn’t too fond of us, but we got the dagger within a couple of days.”

“I still can’t believe you went in there by yourselves,” Amir said with a shake of his head. “Nobody has come out alive as long as I can remember.”

“Between the river, the gryphons, and the boar, it was close.” The edges of Dorcas’ eyes crinkled and she nudged Lily. “Though we can at least blame the earthquakes on James.”

The six of them dissolved into laughter; James rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t expecting it to be sentient, okay? It only happened twice.”

“What did you do?” Fleamont asked wearily.

“I described the desolate wasteland, and the desolate wasteland took offense. The second time was when we grabbed the dagger from a freaky pit made of glass.”

“It was more of an obsidian, actually,” Dorcas mused. “The second earthquake was our cue to leave. Hestia and the girls found us at the border.”

Amir sat up straighter, and Rashid grabbed his hand. “You went home?”

“For a night or so, yeah. They had only just heard the news, and Caradoc did a really wonderful job handling everything. I signed all the paperwork I could—”

“Dorcas.” Amir’s eyes turned sad. “Why didn’t you stay there, where it was safe?”

“They needed my help,” she answered simply. “And I wasn’t going to leave before I found you. The seven of us only made it to the city because we were a small group. Bringing an army would have been a death sentence.”

“What about the rest of you?” Hope asked. “Did you go to Glastam for help?”

Sirius pressed his lips together. “We specifically avoided it to stay under the radar. None of them would have been able to help, anyway.”

“How did you get food, then? And supplies?”

Remus coughed, hiding a smile in his fist. “I don’t know, Marlene, how did we pay for food?”

She seemed torn between embarrassment and pride; Sirius wished he could have a clear picture of that facial expression for the rest of his life. “I won a bar fight.”

“Oh my—” Annette broke off and closed her eyes. “Against whom?”

“Someone who deserved it. You’d be surprised how much drunken idiots carry around in their coin purses. It was a great way to brush up on my dueling skills.”

“And we are so glad to have you.” Sirius grinned as he high-fived Peter behind her back. “That was the first square meal we had days. After that, we caught news of the carriage and started tracking it toward the border.”

“Is it true you removed one of the wheels?” Peter asked.

“That was my idea,” Rashid said with a smug smile. “For all their training, you’d think the soldiers would have had a few more brain cells to spare.”

“That delayed them by, what, three days?” Pride shone on Amir’s face as he looked at his husband, and Dorcas rolled her eyes fondly.

“After I—” Marlene’s voice faltered for a half-second. “After we lost you again, we decided to wait by the border for the other group. We were expecting to be there for a week, but they showed up an hour or two past sunset with a…friend.”

Lily’s face went stony. “Severus was my old neighbor, and he followed us to the farmhouse and promised to take us to Os Anguis through their underground tunnels.”

“He was creepy,” James added. “We should’ve known better, but we were sleep-deprived and not in a great headspace for rational decisions.”

“What did he do?” Louise asked cautiously.

“Well, he led us into the tunnels alright.” Sirius felt a flame rise up behind his teeth. “And then through hallucination fog, bloodsucking bats, and a whole cohort of his Death Eater pals that correctly identified him as a pathetic little worm.”

A heartbeat of silence covered the campsite as the parents stared at them, wide-eyed. Fleamont blinked a few times in shock. “How did you escape?”

“I knocked him out and we started running.” Lily’s fingers twitched toward her empty belt. “We hid behind a dead worm and a couple of Death Eaters basically gave us instructions to the exit on accident.”

Relief washed over Rashid’s face. “So you didn’t have to fight.”

All six of them looked at Remus at the same time. “No,” Hope said.

He winced. “Yeah.”

She turned to her husband with a storm in her eyes. “He got the self-sacrificing streak from you.”

“At first we were planning on staying together,” Peter offered. “If he didn’t do it, we all would’ve died.”

“They didn’t find out about the thing until later,” Remus said, scrubbing a hand down his face. “I made sure they were gone before changing.”

Annette made a timeout motion. “You’ve referenced this ‘thing’ twice now, and I’m not sure I understand. Does this have anything to do with what we may or may not have seen at the palace?”

The edge of his mouth turned down. “It does.”

“I thought I imagined that,” she muttered.

“How did you survive?” Lyall asked. He looked rather pale to Sirius’ eyes, but that might have just been the firelight washing him out. Then again, hearing your son almost died in a tunnel while tearing assassins to bits with his teeth probably wasn’t the easiest news to bear.

“Luck,” Remus said simply. “When I was sure the Death Eaters wouldn’t follow me, I started tracking the group.”

“He found us just after dawn,” James confirmed. “We were starting to think…”

“It wasn’t a great night,” Sirius finished for him. He saw Euphemia and Hope exchange a look. “Showing up drenched in blood and completely untouched was a bit of a surprise, as you can imagine.”

Guilt passed over Remus’ face. “I don’t remember much after getting out of the tunnels. The next thing I knew, I was in the hut and Peter was looking at me like I was on my deathbed.”

James cleared his throat and Peter chewed the inside of his lip. “We were more worried about him getting throttled than any injuries, to be honest. I think I forgot to mention the big, tension-breaking kiss before he went running off.”

“Like an idiot,” Sirius added. “The big, tension-breaking kiss before he went running off like an idiot.”

Lyall looked over at Hope. “He got that from you.”

She raised her eyebrows at her son, who had gone beet red. “Young man, you’re lucky your boyfriend puts up with theatrics.”

The other five burst out laughing, practically falling all over themselves while Sirius let out a long-suffering sigh. “Puts up with—” James broke off into a new round of cackling. “The idea of Sirius having to put up with theatrics is just—”

“Yes, yes, they get it, thank you,” he grumbled, throwing a squirrel bone at James’ face. “The point is, we all made it out alive and only lost a coward along the way. We took a day to rest, then headed out again.”

“We got ambushed on the road.” The humor died out of Lily’s face as she spoke. “We were winning, but then Bellatrix pinned Sirius and we found out about the wolf.”

Euphemia gave Remus a significant look. “And that’s…you.”

He nodded. “I’ve been able to do it since I was five. It’s kind of a big secret, and there wasn’t a lot of time to explain at the palace. Sorry if I scared anyone.”

“It was more startling than anything,” Rashid assured him. “You saved my daughter’s life. I don’t care how you did it. Thank you.”

A smile pulled up one side of Remus’ mouth. “Any time.”

“The story gets pretty basic after that,” Sirius said. “We went into a town to get supplies, found some wanted posters, and then crossed the mountains. We spent…ten days up there? Maybe? It was hard to tell. Really, Remus was the only reason we survived.”

“Yeah, I didn’t see your actual face for days until Sirius fell over the edge,” Peter laughed. “I almost missed the ears.”

Remus stuck his tongue out around his smile. “One of these days, I’m going to bite you.”

“I saved your life—”

“Bull sh—”

“I did!”

“This entire trip has been saving each others lives!” Dorcas protested with a grin. “You can’t claim that every time you want something!”

“Back to the story, please,” Amir interrupted with a timeout symbol. “I don’t even want to know about your near-death experiences in the mountains. My heart can’t handle that.”

“I still think the tunnels were the worst part, but I never want to hike through snow again,” Sirius said with a shudder. “The only good thing was the dog.”

“It’s not a dog.” Remus turned a slight pout on him and he felt his heart melt a little. “It’s a direwolf. There’s a difference.”

“Right, a sacred symbol,” he teased.

“Exactly.”

“You were in the mountains?” Hope prompted.

“Lily had the brilliant idea to go toward the base so we didn’t freeze to death,” James continued. “We actually saw your carriage tracks when we made it down. Os Anguis was only a three-day walk from there, and you know the rest. Riddle’s army marched out the night we broke in.”

“Wow.” Fleamont nodded slowly and turned to the rest of the parents. “Well, I think we can all agree that was much worse than we thought.”

“Oh, absolutely,” Annette agreed.

Lyall laughed without humor. “No doubt.”

“We’re still very proud of all of you,” Euphemia assured them, though she looked rather pained. “Please don’t ever do any of that ever again.”

“Wasn’t planning on it,” Sirius said. Above them, the sun was already nearing the west horizon; sleep sounded beyond fantastic.

“I vote we eat and then get some rest.” Peter cast a glance around their circle.

There were a few murmurs of agreement and Sirius winced as he stood up—he hadn’t realized just how much his injuries ached until Dumbledore’s healing magic began to wear off. It appeared his body had reached the end of its rope. James and Marlene’s faces were tight with tension as they rose, and Lily flinched when she swallowed. “We don’t have any bows to hunt,” Dorcas said with a slight frown as she flexed her spear-blistered fingers.

Remus shrugged. “I can handle it, don’t worry.”

“You need to take it easy more than I do.”

“I’m fine.”

“Remus—”

“What happened?” Alarm sharpened Annette’s voice and Sirius turned on instinct, preparing for blood. Instead, he saw her reaching for the tattered and bloodstained hole in Marlene’s shirt. “Marlene, what is this?”

“I, um.” She looked to Sirius in slight panic, then back down at her shirt. “We—well, we broke down the door to Riddle’s office and he didn’t take kindly to that, so he…stabbed me. Kind of.”

All the color drained from eight faces and Marlene’s mothers yanked her in for a hug. “And the rest of you?” Fleamont demanded. The sleepy atmosphere dissipated in the blink of an eye and Sirius silently cursed Annette’s quick eyes. “Did anyone else get stabbed and fail to mention it?”

James’ throat bobbed as he showed the hole in his pant leg. “Riddle turned into a giant snake and bit me.”

“He what?”

“It surprised us, too,” Dorcas said. “Marlene and Remus were already hurt, and then he kind of exploded and took the tower with him. We tried to get out of the city, but all the gates were closed.”

“Already hurt? Another stab wound?” Lyall asked, his voice pitching slightly higher in disbelief as he scanned Remus for injuries. “Did you—"

Remus stepped closer and wrapped his arms around Lyall’s waist without a word. The king let out a shuddering breath and hugged him tight; Sirius only caught a glimpse of his eyes dampening before warm hands took him firmly by the shoulders.

“You look a bit more intact than Jamie,” Fleamont said, though his voice shook as he pulled Sirius into an embrace.

“Dumbledore healed us before bringing us here,” Sirius said. “Still sore, though. I—I killed Bellatrix.”

“I think this journey held a lot of death for all of you,” he said gently. “More than you told us, at least. I’m so sorry, Sirius.”

He pulled away with a sniffle. “Please don’t get kidnapped again.”

There was a light touch at his elbow as Remus came over. “I’m heading out.”

“Alone?”

“No, I think we have a few things to discuss,” Hope cut in with an amused glimmer in her eye. “Two sets of claws are better than one, right?”

Sirius leaned up and kissed his cheek; Remus’ whole face brightened, and he returned the gesture before transforming and padding off into the trees at the heels of Hope’s chestnut wolf. “I’m never going to get used to that,” Fleamont muttered.

“They’re a lot bigger when they’re closer,” Amir noted. Lyall looked quite proud as he watched them go.

Sirius couldn’t recall the last time he went to bed with a full belly feeling marginally safe. Dumbledore would be there in the morning to collect them, but Riddle was finally dead and the army no longer had a reason to fight. They had more than a fool’s chance at victory. He watched Regulus’ chest rise and fall across the embers of the fire and cuddled closer to Remus, feeling him hum quietly as his arm tightened around Sirius’ midriff.

“We’re almost done,” Sirius murmured.

Warm lips pressed against the shell of his half-frozen ear and Remus pulled their blanket up higher. “Almost.”

“I thought I was going to lose you in that tower.”

He felt a breath puff against his neck before Remus nudged his face into the junction of his shoulder, bringing them impossibly closer. “I wouldn’t leave you like that.”

“It feels weird, not keeping watch.”

“I’ll stay up with you.”

In the tent—which had been delegated to the parents after much protesting—someone snored loudly and both of them began to shake with suppressed laughter. “Who was that?”

“My Da,” Remus snickered. “Holy sh*t, I even missed his snoring.”

Soon, they lapsed back into easy quiet; Sirius closed his eyes and listened to the even breaths of his friends, his family, allowing the sound to calm the pounding of his heart. For the first time in his life, everyone he cared about was safely within his sightline. The thought hit him hard enough that he felt a burning at the corners of his eyes and held on to Remus’ hand, basking in his clean smell.

“Stay,” he whispered, barely above a breath. “You don’t have to be alone anymore, Remus. When this is all over, tell me you’ll stay.”

He felt Remus’ chest stutter against his back, then a soft sigh against the top of his spine. “I’m sorry you ever thought I wouldn’t.”

“Don’t apologize. You did what you had to do.” Sirius hesitated. “I’m sorry I lied to you. About Reg, about my family, about all of it. I’ve been running from it for six years and I—and I didn’t want you to think poorly of me.”

“There was never any chance of that,” Remus said before a heavy pause settled between them. “You saw Regulus, didn’t you? In the tunnels.”

Sirius nodded.

“That must have been hard.”

“It wasn’t really him, and I think I knew that. When I left, he was fourteen and much angrier. He’s a good kid.” Sirius forced his quavering mouth to still. “But it was hard, yes. What was the little girl’s name? Paulie?”

“Penny.” He could hear the smile in Remus’ voice. “Her name is Penny. She’s clever, and I followed her tracks out of Varghal when I went back. You met her once, actually.”

“Did I?”

“At the welcome feast. She stole you away from me after I asked you to dance.”

“And here I was, thinking you were just messing with me,” he teased. That night was difficult to remember after the events of the last few weeks—it was mostly blurred colors and sounds, but he recalled a yellow dress and a young girl who barely reached the base of his ribs as she giggled.

“Sirius, I would have danced with you all night if I could.”

Sirius reached back and touched the high of Remus’ cheekbone, the tips of his grown-out curls trailing over his fingertips. When everything is back in order, I’m going to kiss him until he sees stars, he swore to himself. And then we’re going on a picnic. The best f*cking picnic anyone has ever seen.

It wasn’t hard to fall asleep to visions of his plan.

Chapter 13: Pick A Star on the Dark Horizon

Chapter Text

The night passed with few disturbances, giving way to a clear, frosty morning. Remus and Hope headed off into the woods once again for breakfast, shoulder-to-shoulder until he could hardly tell where one wolf ended and the other began. They returned from time to time with mouthfuls of squirrels until nearly two dozen laid prone by the embers of the previous night’s fire.

Fleamont whistled while he cooked—Sirius wasn’t sure how he had never noticed before. “What song is that?” he asked as smoke curled through the mist.

A certain softness came over his face; some of the weariness lifted as he nodded his head toward Euphemia. “Our wedding song.”

“It’s nice.”

“One of my favorites,” he agreed, turning the spit. Sirius worried at his bottom lip and set to skinning the next rodent. “What are you thinking so hard about?”

“I’m just glad you’re here.”

Fleamont raised an eyebrow. “And?”

“And…” Sirius trailed off, searching for the right words. “And I’m worried about what’s next. I want—I don’t know what I want anymore.”

“You spent a long time running.”

Across the fire, Dorcas shifted in her sleep and Marlene pressed a soothing kiss to her temple as she watched the last bits of the sunrise. “We’ve come a long way,” Sirius said at last. “Jamie doesn’t need me anymore. I don’t want to go back to Silvalith, but if that’s where Reg wants to be, I don’t know if I can let him go again.”

“I think you should do whatever makes you happy, Sirius.” Fleamont glanced at him with something unreadable in his eyes. “You deserve that much, and you always have. No matter what you decide, you’ll always have a home with us.”

“I wish Regulus had been with me from the start.”

“We all wish for the things we can’t change.”

Sirius turned to him, noting the worry lines on his face with a sudden pang of regret. He never wanted to be the cause for Fleamont and Euphemia’s suffering. “Do we?”

Quiet fell between them for a moment as Fleamont put a new squirrel on the spit. “I wish your journey never happened. None of you should have gone through half the things you did, and I am truly sorry you were placed in that position.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“It is. As the leaders of our countries, it was our responsibility to keep watch for threats. We ignored Riddle and fell for his tricks, and you were the ones who paid for it.” His brows creased in the middle. “I know you watered down your tale yesterday. I hate to think of what was left out.”

“Nothing too bad.”

“You’re a terrible liar, you know.”

“Do you actually want to know?” Sirius asked. Fleamont searched his face for a moment, then nodded.

“In Hemgard, we only got away because I killed one of the Death Eaters,” Marlene said. Her voice was barely audible over the pops and hisses of the fire, but her shoulders were set. The steady pace of her fingers in Dorcas’ hair did not falter. “More of them found us after we saw you on the hill, and we were ambushed again just before the mountains. In the tower—”

She broke off, and Sirius pressed his lips together. “He was ready for us. After he stabbed Marlene, he took Remus’ magic away and it nearly killed him. He really did shapeshift into a giant snake and bite James. If it wasn’t for Regulus, we’d all be dead.”

Fleamont let out a slow breath, suddenly looking ten years older. “I’m so sorry.”

“You saved my life,” Sirius continued. “Without you, I would never have made it out of Silvalith, and Regulus would have been crushed under Riddle’s thumb. You don’t owe me any apologies.”

Fleamont didn’t look like he believed him, but didn’t push the issue, either. With a wry smile, he reached up and ruffled Sirius’ hair. “You need to get this cut.”

“I like it!”

“Do you really?”

“Yes! If anyone needs a haircut, it’s your s—oof.”

The direwolf huffed and scooted forward, setting its heavy head further across Sirius’ lap like a dead weight. It sniffed toward the fire and looked to him with pleading eyes.

“Hungry, much?” Sirius asked around a smile. He hadn’t even heard them return from the woods. A soft whine answered him and he rolled his eyes, giving its forehead a light shove that didn’t even budge it an inch. “Overgrown puppy is what you are.”

Remus’ fangs closed around his wrist and he growled; the fact that his grip wasn’t even tight enough to leave a mark diminished the threat somewhat, though Fleamont still looked a bit nervous. Sirius supposed the direwolf would be rather startling to someone who hadn’t depended on it for survival within 12 hours of knowing it existed.

“It’ll be done in two seconds,” he promised.

The air shivered, and then Remus was laying across his lap with his chin on his forearms, staring balefully at him like some poor orphaned waif. “Please?”

“Do you want food poisoning?”

“It won’t bother me if I’m not human.”

Sirius carded a hand through his honey curls; Remus’ eyes closed and he hummed happily, only to let out an undignified squawk when Sirius pushed him off his lap. “You were squishing me.”

“I was not!” Remus protested. “The wolf is heavier than I am!”

Fleamont cleared his throat. “How heavy is it, exactly?”

Remus blinked at him in surprise, then shrugged one shoulder. “Around a hundred pounds heavier than me, I’d guess. Thanks for making breakfast.”

“Any time.”

“I really am sorry if I scared anyone,” Remus said, folding his legs under himself.

“You did exactly what you were supposed to do,” Hope assured him as she settled next to them with a waterskin and passed it around. “I’m sure—”

“Sir’us?” a drowsy voice mumbled from the pile of blankets to their right. “Sir’us, you there?”

Sirius was by his side in an instant, breakfast forgotten. The poison had done a number on him even with Dumbledore’s healing spell—sleeping that off couldn’t be easy. Regulus’ hands were cold when he rubbed them between his own. “I’m here. How’re you feeling?”

Regulus groaned softly and leaned against him. His face was still waxen, but it had a bit more healthy color than before. He only looked half-dead instead of truly corpselike. “Sore. Thirsty.”

“I’ll be right back, okay?” But before he could move, something nudged his arm; Hope’s eyes were kind as she held out the canteen. He sent her a silent thank you and readjusted so Regulus was against his side, where he could tilt his head up to drink. “Did you sleep well?”

“Bad dreams. Bella. Mum and dad.” His glassy gaze filled with concern. “Hurting you, didn’t like it.”

“It was just a dream,” Sirius soothed as Regulus shivered and pressed closer. “Is your arm feeling better?”

“Numb.”

“Alright.” Better than pain, I suppose. Lily and James’ voices grew louder as they returned from gathering firewood from the forest; across the circle, the others were beginning to wake. “Drink this, and go slow so you don’t get sick. Are you hungry?”

Regulus shot him a withering look, but between his sleep-ruffled hair and general inability to hold himself upright for longer than a few seconds, he was about as threatening as a baby toucan. “I can take care of myself.”

“I’m just doing my job as your pain-in-the-ass older brother. Got a lot of time to make up for, you know.”

That earned him a scoff and a weak shove, and he snorted before moving back to the fire to grab a squirrel for breakfast. For the first time in his twenty-odd years of life, Regulus was an obedient little brother and sipped his water as the dew on the grass turned to vapor. It was shaping up to be a beautiful day—for a moment, Sirius let himself forget that they would soon be thrown back into the fire and concentrated on cuddling into Remus’ warmth.

As noon drew closer with no sign of Dumbledore, Sirius began to wonder if the old wizard was just f*cking with them. They had already defeated Riddle and saved their parents, after all; by rights, their quest was over. Why should they have to fight a war when an all-powerful sorcerer could snap his fingers and turn the army around?

But part of Sirius—a very small part, but a part all the same—didn’t want to go back. He wasn’t sure he would fit in Harindvar anymore after everything he had done. The puzzle was the same, but the piece would be different. He couldn’t lose his friends to normal life again. There would be weeks of travel between them when it was all over.

Marlene was elbows-deep in packing up the tent when she suddenly shrieked and leapt backward as if she had been burned; the six of them had their weapons drawn in a second. “What’s wrong?” James demanded.

She ran a hand down her face with a groan. “Remus, your friend is back.”

“What?” He frowned. “I don’t have any other friends.”

“First of all, that’s kind of sad.” Marlene reached behind the pack and hauled out a ball of stripy fur. “Second of all, I meant her.”

“Minerva!” Dorcas gasped, lifting her out of Marlene’s arms and covering her tabby head in kisses. “I missed you, pretty girl!”

“You don’t call me ‘pretty girl’,” Marlene grumbled.

“I call you plenty of things. No need to be jealous of a cat, love.”

“Did you follow us all the way here?” Remus asked as Minerva wiggled to the ground. He sat, and she climbed into his lap almost immediately with a yowl so loud Sirius winced. “Travelling all by your lonesome is very dangerous, you know.”

“Says you,” Lily teased, earning herself a playful glare.

King Rashid raised his eyebrows in amusem*nt. “Is this another friend in disguise? Care to introduce us?”

“This—” Remus leaned forward to pick Minerva up, but she dodged his hands and clambered around to stand on his upper back. “Well. Alright, then. This is Minerva, our guide to Dumbledore’s cottage.”

“She didn’t mention the ravine we almost died in, unfortunately,” Peter added as he pulled a hunk of squirrel meat off the bone and fed it to her. “Though she is a cat, so we can’t really blame her.”

“No, you cannot,” a gentle voice said from the bushes. Sirius stifled a yelp and Dumbledore chuckled. “Apologies, I should have announced myself better. Good morning, all. Are you ready to continue?”

“Continue what?” James asked warily.

“The armies of Silvalith have already reached the mountain pass, and they are moving toward the Middle Kingdom with great haste. News of Tom Riddle’s death has not reached the lines. If you would like to prevent the war, you need to move.”

“There’s no way we can outrun them on foot,” Lyall said, clearly confused. “Remus and Hope might stand a chance, but the rest of us have no transportation and no way to contact our kingdoms.”

Dumbledore looked at him as if he had just told a particularly amusing joke; irritation flickered over Remus’ face, and Minerva began making biscuits on the back of his shoulder. “That’s why I’m here, of course.”

James’ face fell. “Not again.”

“What?” Alarm rose in Sirius’ chest and he saw Marlene’s brow furrow. “What’s wrong?”

“He’s making us split up again.”

“No,” six voices chorused.

“There has to be another way,” Marlene insisted.

Queen Annette sighed. “You’ll have to separate at some point—”

“Not after what happened yesterday!” James protested. “We didn’t come all this way just to lose each other again.”

“It will be quite safe,” Dumbledore soothed. “Remus, if you’d be so—”

“Riddle was ripping him apart, in case you forgot!” James snapped. Hope and Lyall looked to their son, but his gaze was focused on the wizard. “If you had been two minutes later, Marlene would be dead!”

Dorcas’ eyes flashed. “The last time we split, you sent us into a death trap with an unmarked map, a broken compass, and a handkerchief. We were almost killed a dozen times before we figured it out.”

“But you did solve the puzzle.”

“We’re not doing this again,” Remus said. “We’ll find some horses, or—"

“And what will you do when you meet the army?” The wizard’s caterpillar eyebrows rose. “You have survived thus far on luck and secrets, but if you try to take on a force of that size alone, you will die, and everything you worked for will be wasted.”

“So you’ll take us home?” Queen Louise asked, twisting the simple ring on her finger until her wife placed her hand over it in comfort.

“I will.”

“Please.” Marlene’s voice cracked as she looked to her mothers. “Please, we can’t separate, not after everything.”

Silence fell over the clearing; Hope smiled, a little sad. “I had always hoped you would become close in the future. I never expected you to become a family.”

Marlene shook her head. “The last time we split up, terrible things happened. I don’t—we can’t do that again. Please.”

“We have to go,” Lily murmured.

“Lily—”

“If we stay together, everything will fall apart. My country will be the first target, so just—for me. Do it for me.” Sirius saw his own hurt reflected in her eyes when she looked up, lingering on James before it slid away. “This isn’t goodbye. It’s something we have to do.”

“She’s right,” King Amir said, resting a comforting hand on Dorcas’ shoulder. “I understand that this is hard for you all, but codependence will never bring good things. You need to be leaders now.”

Sirius’ chest was so tight he could hardly breathe. He turned to the wizard. “How long do we have this time?”

Dumbledore had the audacity to seem saddened. “Fifteen minutes. I wish I could give you more, but the magic reaches its peak at noon and I’ll need all the help I can get to transport so many different groups such a long way.”

He closed his eyes and heard Marlene’s breathing stutter behind him. “I guess we’d better finish packing, then.”

Sirius wished he could stretch every second into an hour, every minute into a lifetime—they hadn’t been apart since the tunnels, and the mere idea of going to sleep without having everyone he loved within reach was nearly enough to send him over the edge of panic. At least I can take Reg and James, he repeated in his mind for the umpteenth time, though it didn’t do much to calm him. Fingertips brushed his arm as he took a few breaths to slow his racing heart.

“Everything alright?” Remus’ voice was quiet, but anxious. Sirius turned and wrapped both arms around him, holding him close.

“I’ll find you,” he promised, burying his face in the soft rabbit fur lining the front of Remus’ coat. The poor thing had been battered to hell and back over the course of their journey; it was a miracle it had survived with only a few scuffs.

A puff of air warmed his ear as Remus pressed their temples together. His palm was warm where it spread between Sirius’ shoulder blades. “Not if I get to you, first.”

“Will you be okay going back?”

He nodded, though his cheek pressed harder against the side of Sirius’ neck. “I know what to expect, and I won’t be alone this time. I’ve got something to come back to, now.”

Sirius closed his eyes and cradled the back of Remus’ head in one palm, lacing his fingers in soft curls. “What if we don’t make it out?” he asked quietly. “What if—you saw the march, Remus. There’s too many.”

“I’ll wait for you.” His voice was only a degree above a whisper, low and steady. It lacked the desperation of their tunnel promise; this was not a hopeful assurance. It was an oath. Remus’ lips brushed the top of his ear. “If we don’t make it out, I’ll wait for you in the halls of my forebears and they will welcome you with open arms. And if I go and you stay, I’ll be with you in every touch of wind and flake of snow.”

Sirius knew he was trembling and couldn’t find the courage to make it stop. He would give anything to not have to make that oath. He would give anything to lay down his weapons and rest with his friends. But he would be loyal to them to the bitter end, and so his choice was already made. He turned his face out of Remus’ coat and clasped their hands in the narrow space between them, broad chest to broad chest, foreheads pressing together. “I’ll meet you there at the golden tables.”

“Two minutes,” James murmured. Sirius gave Remus’ hand a final squeeze before leaning up for a kiss, then forced himself to step back. James took his place for a brief, rib-crushing hug. “I’m not going to kiss you, but promise me you’ll come back.”

“I will,” Remus laughed, though his eyes were a little damp when they separated. “Where’s Lily going?”

“With them, then wherever she damn well likes.” Lily smiled at him and mussed his hair before claiming an embrace of her own. The tension by her eyes did not falter. “Stay safe up there.”

“It’s time,” Dumbledore said from his place by the fire. Their parents waited in four groups, with Regulus standing a short distance from Euphemia.

Terror and grief clashed in Sirius’ chest; his hands shook, and he shoved them into his pockets. Courage. Courage now, just for a bit longer. “Alright, everyone, bring it in.”

They all must have been thinking the same thing, because it took a fraction of a second for them to collide in a stumbling embrace. A few tears threatened to fall, but he sniffed them down and clutched the back of Marlene’s vest even tighter. It wasn’t goodbye, not yet. There was no need for sadness.

“See you on the other side.” Peter cleared his throat when they moved apart at last. “Won’t be long.”

Dorcas and Marlene shared one more kiss before joining their respective parents. Marlene held on to her hand as long as she could; Dorcas’ lower lip trembled, but she kept her chin up.

Sirius kept a steadying hand on Regulus’ back while golden magic buzzed in the air, committing the faces of his friends to memory. If this was the last time they were all together, he wanted to remember it until the day he died.

There was a flash of light—Remus’ eyes met his and flared wide, and then the world disappeared around them.

Sirius didn’t sleep that first night. Being in Harindvar was such a relief that it hurt somewhere deep in his chest—James was safe, his parents were safe, and Regulus was receiving the best healing he could imagine. The beach was within sight; he could see the ocean. The real, actual ocean, with vibrant islands in the distance and waves crashing in a familiar symphony.

He closed his eyes as another tear tracked down to his ear. Just as he feared, he was home, but it didn’t feel like it anymore. He was not the same boy whose greatest worry was making sure James remembered his trousers in a mystical land of snow. He was a survivor, a killer, a lover. He was too much for this place, and yet somehow no longer enough.

There was a soft knock at the door and he dried his face on the side of his pillow. The plush give of his mattress was almost too soft after sleeping on the ground for so long. “Come in.”

James’ shadow slipped through the crack in the door; voices floated in after him, then faded. “I can’t sleep.”

“Me, either.” He opened the side of his blankets wordlessly and James slid into the space next to him despite the cramped bed that was decidedly not made for two grown men. For a moment, they were sixteen again, and James was talking him through whatever nightmare plagued him into wakefulness.

“I told my parents I’m stepping down.”

“Ah.” Sirius waited for him to elaborate, but James kept his gaze on the ceiling. “Did it go well?”

“I think so.” He sniffled. “They were confused, but—but after I explained everything they understood. I’ll start working with granddad in the spring or summer.”

“That’s amazing, Jamie. I’m proud of you.”

James’ lower lip trembled. “I’m letting them down, aren’t I?”

“Don’t—”

“They worked so hard to get here, and now I’m bailing to go right back to what they left.”

“You’re doing the exact same thing your dad did, right? You’re not happy continuing the family business, so you found something else to do. And you’re going to be damn good at it.” James remained still and silent, so Sirius rolled onto his side and poked his chest. “Say it with me. I, James Potter.”

He sighed heavily. “I, James Potter.”

“Am going to be the best bloody sailor.”

“Am going to be the best bloody sailor.”

“This country has ever seen.”

A small smile appeared in the low light of the city outside. “This country has ever seen.”

“And I will not be disappointing my parents, who love me and are proud of me no matter what.”

James glanced over. “Could you repeat that a little slower?”

Sirius rolled his eyes, dropping an elbow to James’ ribs. “You get the point. What you just did was brave as sh*t, so don’t come to me and try to talk yourself out of it. I won’t let you. Where’s Lily?”

“East wing, with a view of the sea. Can you believe she’s never seen it?”

Sirius hummed, and comfortable quiet descended on them like a silver net.

“I’ve been telling myself this isn’t the end, but it kind of feels like it,” Sirius said softly. “Neither of us will be at council meetings, and Lily’s going to go home, and everyone else will be so busy that it’s hard to imagine we’ll have time to see each other.”

“What, you’re not going to take over for me here?” James teased, though his throat sounded tight.

“I thought you liked this place in one piece,” Sirius countered. Their laughter died out much quicker than usual, and he found himself straining to hear the five other voices that should have been there; silence hung in the air, and he shook his head. “I never thought I’d miss the damn tent.”

“I should go back to my own bed, shouldn’t I?” James sighed through his nose. “I don’t know if I’ve thanked you yet, but I wouldn’t even have made it out of Varghal without you.”

“And I wouldn’t have made it out of my parents’ front gate without you, you noble bastard.” Tears pricked the corners of his eyes again. “Go on, get some rest. We’ve got a busy day ahead.”

‘Busy’ didn’t even begin to cover it for James. ‘Boring’ was, unfortunately, the proper word for the mayhem of the next two weeks, when Sirius was shunted to the side while actual leaders held endless meetings he was not invited to. Family dinners became nonexistent; James did his best, but often Sirius would spend the whole day playing tour guide for Lily. He tried not to be frustrated, but there was a helplessness to being the ward that he had not missed after being on equal footing with his friends.

Thankfully, Lily seemed to understand. “Is this what you do all day?” she asked, breaking her gaze from the water for a brief moment to glance at him as the late afternoon sun crawled upward.

He shrugged. “I’m usually not allowed to do actual important stuff, so I help out wherever I can. Pulling boats in, patching roofs, stacking cargo...whatever people need a spare set of hands for. Pretty useless when they're getting ready for a war, though.”

Lily leaned back against the tree trunk and wiggled her toes in the warm sand with a sigh. “It’s probably snowing at home, right now. Or just frozen over and muddy. This is nice.”

“Wait for summer,” Sirius groaned, flopping onto his back. “It’s awful. I burned both my feet walking back to the house because I forgot my shoes.”

“You’re joking!”

“I wish I was. Blisters everywhere.”

“Remember your shoes next time, dummy.” She prodded his knee and he kicked her lightly on the shin in retaliation. “I’ll tell your mum you hit me.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“Would.”

“Want another mango?”

“Mr. Black, you read my mind.”

Regulus was up and walking under his own power by the sixth day, and Lily was kind enough to give them time to themselves while she occupied herself elsewhere. They talked about anything and everything except the important stuff—the familiarity of their routine soothed Sirius’ frayed nerves a bit.

Unfortunately, Regulus did not have the same manners as James. “We need to talk,” he said, throwing the door to Sirius’ bedroom open.

“I could’ve been asleep, you rude bastard.”

“It’s too early.”

“I could’ve been—”

“If this has anything to do with your boyfriend, I don’t want to hear it.” Regulus perched himself on the foot of Sirius’ bed and crossed his legs, fixing him with a look. “We need to talk.”

“So I’ve heard.”

“Mother and Father told me you ran away, but you didn’t. I stayed pissed at you for a while, they got worse, and then I joined the Death Eaters when I was sixteen and they were proud of me again.” He said it like a challenge and Sirius forced down a wince as guilt raised its ugly head.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. It’s the truth. What have you been doing for the past six years?”

“This, mostly.”

“Why?”

Great question. “Nobody in Silvalith wanted me, and James’ parents heard about the party. They found me within a couple of days and brought me here, where I lied to everyone who asked questions. Nobody knew the truth until that dungeon.” He shrugged, holding Regulus’ narrow gaze. It was a game they had been playing since they were young: ‘convey terrible things in as few words as possible to avoid disgusting emotions’. They were both masters.

“Alright. I’m not going back there.”

“I’d be dead before you did. I don’t know if I’ll stay here.”

“I might.” Something close to a smile twitched at Regulus’ mouth as he looked out the window. “I like it. It’s...open. Don’t know how to swim, though.”

“I can teach you,” Sirius offered, much quieter than he intended. “It’s easy enough.”

Regulus’ face was soft when he looked back, less angry and more curious. Curious, like he had been when they were children hunting for trolls in the streams and fairies in the woods until the maids called them home for another cold, silent dinner. “Thank you. It was…quiet, without you.”

“I’m glad you’re happy here.”

“I don’t think your friends like me much,” Regulus said wryly, facing the window once more, though he scooted a smidgen closer to Sirius.

“They do. Trust me.”

Regulus scrunched his nose up and Sirius silently wrapped an arm around his shoulders, letting him rest his head on his shoulder. Harindvar was warm, even at night on the cusp of winter—the cool breeze ruffled both their hair as it washed in from the open sea. The last of the fishermen were specks on the water, heading back to their island homes, but birds still flitted through the sky like shooting stars. Regulus shivered against him.

“It’s alright,” Sirius said, keeping his voice low.

“There’s still a war.”

“We’ve been through worse, haven’t we?” There was wiry muscle on Regulus’ arm that he didn’t remember from years before, when Regulus stayed skin and bones while Sirius filled out from combat training. He used to beg to duel, even when he was too little, but sharp looks from Orion and Walburga put an end to that quickly. “If something does go wrong—”

“No.” Regulus shook his head and straightened up. “You’re going to come back.”

“I’ll try.” They had lost too much to other people’s mistakes already.

“Did you—" Regulus bit the inside of his lip. “What’s the deal with James?”

“He’s my brother as much as you are,” Sirius answered honestly. “And I’m sure you’ll get along, given time. He’s a good person, Reg. They all are. How’s your arm?”

“I can’t feel anything in most of it, except my hand. Dumbledore thought it was something in Riddle’s blood. You?”

“Good as new. You should get some rest.”

“I’ve done nothing but sleep for days.”

“And a little more won’t hurt you.” Sirius nudged him toward the door. “You can stay here if you like, but it’ll be a tight fit.”

Regulus leveled an unimpressed glare on him. “I’m not sharing a bed with you.”

“I don’t know whether to be offended or relieved.” He grinned, and Regulus clambered off the bed with a truly spectacular eye roll. “Sweet dreams, Reg.”

“Don’t let the monsters eat your feet,” Regulus called over his shoulder. Sirius dissolved into laughter and caught the edge of a smile—a real, bright smile—before the door closed.

Well, mostly. “Come on, at least close it all the way!”

Regulus laughed the whole way down the hall.

Finding soldiers was more difficult than Sirius thought it would be. Seventy years of peace did not loan itself well to many trained warriors, and the coast’s strength had always laid in its naval power rather than land attacks. He was not included in the war meetings, but the frustration and exhaustion on James and his parents’ faces told him all he needed to know. It took the better part of two weeks to gather the last of their small army.

Regulus tried to argue when Sirius broke the news that he would be staying behind, but even he knew it was for the best. His arm had taken the brunt of the damage when Riddle died—Dumbledore’s magic saved his life, but he was in no shape to fight. He had done his part.

But most importantly, Sirius knew that losing Regulus so soon after getting him back would be a blow he would not recover from. After a tight hug and a silent wish for luck, he boarded a carriage with James and Lily and left his home behind for what might be the last time.

It took four days to reach the western border of the Middle Kingdom, where the last breaths of autumn still lingered through the gradual change. Humid rainforests eased into rolling hills and sturdy oaks; the weather cooled steadily, but Sirius still found himself remembering the sudden block of chill that set in during their trip to Varghal months prior. It felt like a lifetime ago.

“I’ll miss you,” Lily said one evening as she watched the sunset from her window.

“You can always come visit.” The sheer, aching want on James’ face was almost physically painful to watch. “We’ll have a room for you whenever you want.”

Lily hummed, glancing at him with a soft half-smile. f*cking hell, Sirius thought as James swallowed hard. Something had to give, or else Sirius was going to lose his damn mind while they danced around each other. Then again, it might be hypocritical of him to judge too harshly considering it took near-death to bring him and Remus together.

Smoke blurred the horizon a day from the front, hanging heavy and black as Silval torches approached. Reality began to sink in and Sirius felt his stomach twist. His fingers itched for his sword. He prayed the others would make it safely.

He prayed none of them had to fight. All any of them had ever wanted was to go home.

The soldiers of the Middle Kingdom kept their focus as their carriages moved through the small city of tents covering a wide field, bracketed on either side by dense woodlands that swayed in the breeze. Sirius had never particularly liked the Middle Kingdom—they were known for frivolity and a puppetlike monarchy that few respected—but he had to admit he was grateful for the army that had gathered. Silvalith had taken much of their land in the last war, and it seemed that fact had not been forgotten by the people.

The king and queen, on the other hand, lived up to their unfortunate stereotypes from the moment they arrived.

“We are so glad you’re here!” Lady Lockhart practically wailed the moment Euphemia stepped out of her carriage. “An army on the move! Silvalith! Can you believe it?”

“Absolutely astounding,” the king huffed, ushering James and his parents toward the strategy tent with a confused glance toward Sirius. “The nerve of that king.”

“Well,” Sirius sighed, rocking back on his heels. Lily watched their retreating backs with a slight wrinkle of her nose. “I suppose it’s just you and me, now.”

“Oi!” Sirius’ throat constricted; Lily let out a shout of excitement as Marlene appeared from the crowd and threw herself into her arms, already laughing. “I thought you’d never show!”

“Like I’d miss a chance to grab at glory,” Lily teased, holding her tight around the middle despite her armor. “Jamie’s inside, but how have you been? Has anyone else arrived? Is that armor new?”

“Fine, no, and no.” Marlene pulled away and knocked their foreheads together with a grin. “But it feels damn good to have more than a shirt protecting me again.”

“Hello, Sirius,” Sirius said dryly. “I missed you so much I thought I’d die. Well, thank you, Marlene, I tolerate you as w—”

He was silenced by her pauldron finding a home in the dip of his shoulder, but couldn’t muster even a single protest before returning her fierce hug. “Missed you,” she whispered, ruffling his hair as she stepped back.

“Where’s Pete?”

“Training.” Her face glowed with a rosy flush. “Squire Pettigrew has officially been named Sir Pettigrew, hand to the princess. Not that he wasn’t doing the exact same thing before, but it’s nice that he at least has the title. We’ve been here for three days already. It didn’t take much to get people fired up, seeing as most of them were raised on their grandfathers’ war stories.”

“Any word from the others?” Sirius asked as she began walking toward a long line of benches and a makeshift table.

The edge of Marlene’s mouth tightened. “Some. Remus’ folks have been having trouble bringing everyone back. Most of the pack lived in Varghal, and they went all over the country when it burned. The smaller packs are hard to find.”

They walked in silence for a moment. “And Dorcas?” Lily finally asked.

“Her last letter came a week ago.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. She gets quiet when she’s sad, and splitting up is never her, ah—” Marlene faltered. “It’s not her favorite. Her dads have been sending information about plans, so at least she knows where I am if she needs anything. She’ll be alright. We’ll be fine.”

“You will.” Sirius hoped she believed it as much as he did. They were best as a team, even if Dorcas’ overthinking mind clashed with Marlene’s impulsive heart once in a while. If anyone could make it work, it was them.

She socked him lightly on the shoulder with half a smile. “Course we will. Remus told me to say hello to you in one of his letters, by the way. Said he didn’t have time to send a message to you alone. Absolutely batty, that one.”

“Hey!”

“I say that with all the love in the world,” she assured him before turning to Lily. “Have you at least kissed your boy yet?

“Marlene!” she hissed, flushing red all the way to her ears.

“That’s a no, then?”

“It’s been awful,” Sirius informed her. “Thank you for seeing some sense.”

“I’ll—I’ll figure something out once things calm down,” Lily blustered.

A strong gust blew in from the west; smoke tinged the air, and Sirius felt his euphoria fade. Marlene’s gaze lingered on the far hill and he knew they were thinking the same thing: if something went awry, there might not be a time for things to calm down. There would be no second chances.

James and Peter found them in the mess hall half an hour after sunset and they trooped to a quiet space together, away from the loud voices of the soldiers and the palpable tension. The grass was still sun-warm, but the night breeze made their breath steam as they laid beneath the stars in a tight group, stubbornly refusing to acknowledge the absences.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Lily murmured. Sirius wondered if the farmhouse they had met Severus in was close, or if that had simply been a figment of his imagination. Their whole journey felt like a dream.

“It is,” Marlene answered, her long hair splaying in a halo. “I miss the nights when it was just us. It’s silly, since we were afraid all the time, but those were my favorites.”

Sirius made a soft sound of agreement. Somewhere, Remus was watching those same stars, that same moon. The ache in his stomach eased. The five of them parted an hour later, when the night watch changed shifts and the temperature dropped to frost the grass. Sirius curled up in his tent and dozed, cold for the first time in many days.

His dreams were more like memories that night. Half-formed images flickered through his mind, like the artists who did a hundred drawings of a person running to make it look like they moved in real life. He saw Dorcas twisting around on horseback to fire an arrow, and Marlene laughing so hard she spit water all over the embers of their fire. He saw Peter’s solemn face while he prepared to heal Remus’ nonexistent wounds and James’ stricken expression after Lily threw an apple at his forehead. Lily was lit by the morning sun—they didn’t have watch together often, but their conversations never failed to find a way into his heart.

Many of his hazy visions included Remus. His smile, his scowl, his eyes. The soft curls that fell over his forehead when he slept, and the way the deep blue of his coat turned them auburn-bronze. Most of all, Sirius remembered the steady pulse of his heartbeat sending warmth into every part of him even on the coldest nights. There was little he wouldn’t do to feel it again.

Sirius half-woke in darkness with a stuttering feeling somewhere just below his sternum and sweat cooling on his brow before he drifted off once again. He was never good with complex emotions like that; their quest had been frightening and terrible in many ways, but he had not appreciated the beauty of it until he let his mind wander.

They could never have it back, though. Maybe that was why it left such a sweet aftertaste.

The morning was bright, but that wasn’t what woke him; the ground trembled beneath his feet as he scrambled for his sword. It was impossible for the Silval army to cross so much distance in one night, and surely someone would have seen—

Sirius wrenched his tent flap open and gasped as the body of a massive, lean horse passed inches from his nose. He stumbled back, sword still drawn, and watched in slackjawed shock as dozens of riders drew a roar of cheers from the armies of Tidoras and the Middle Kingdom. His heart leapt. It was a matter of second before he had pulled on the nearest set of clothing and took off at a run for the main pavilion.

Marlene had beat him to it. “—missed you,” he heard her say, her voice muffled by light leather armor. “And I love you, I love you, and why didn’t you write to me?”

Dorcas made a soft sound where her face was buried in golden curls. “I’m so sorry. Everything happened all at once and I was so upset and that’s not an excuse but—”

Marlene stood on her toes and kissed her, one hand cradling Dorcas’ rosy brown cheek. “It’s alright. I was just worried.”

“It won’t happen again,” Dorcas promised, resting their foreheads together. She peeked over Marlene’s shoulder and smiled wide, opening one arm for Sirius to join their hug. His heart skipped a beat at the familiar weight of her arm across his shoulders and her grounded gravity. A laugh bubbled out of her when Lily, James, and Peter arrived in a breathless group. “Am I the last of us?”

A heavy beat of silence passed; Sirius saw her smile dim. “We haven’t heard from Remus,” Marlene said, rubbing her hand over the small of Dorcas’ back with a reassuring smile. “But he’ll come. Last I heard, they were heading south.”

“Dorcas!” King Amir made his way through the crowd, shaking hands and easily maneuvering around horses as he went before coming to a stop in front of their little group. The corners of his eyes creased as he surveyed their faces and placed a light hand on Dorcas’ shoulder. “I’m glad to see all of you safe and sound. Is your brother here?”

“He’s still recovering,” Sirius answered.

The king hummed. “Pity. It would be good to have someone who knows Silvalith’s fighting style.”

He felt the eyes of his friends prickling his neck, but kept his face neutral. “I know them well enough, sir.”

A few seconds passed as King Amir gave him a once over, then nodded. “You’ll be wanted in the tent, then. And I can’t imagine why anyone would deny the warriors that fought King Riddle hand-to-hand. Come with me, all of you.”

The strategy meetings lasted all morning and into the afternoon, but Sirius left the tent feeling as if nothing had been decided. Without Varghal, they would have a weak flank—it had taken an inordinate amount of time to make Lord and Lady Lockhart believe the truth about the direwolves, and that was just the tip of the problem. If the wolves came, they might scare the horses. If the wolves didn’t come, that was a powerful ally lost. Tidoras’ army was well-trained from years of simmering tension on their shared border with Silvalith, yet the Middle Kingdom still lacked numbers. The coastal army was barely a tenth of the combined force. A peaceful solution was still their first option, but Sirius saw tension in every face.

The sunset glinted off distant armor that night. Nobody slept well.

As the war galloped toward them, Sirius began to understand just how lucky their small group had been. Lily and James had never seen real combat, and Peter’s training consisted of acting as a punching bag for the knights. Even Remus was far weaker with a sword than as a wolf. Bellatrix liked to play with her food, and that had been her downfall. Riddle’s soldiers would not make the same mistake.

Four armies stood side-by-side as the dawn turned to a chilly day. One remained unseen and unheard. Trampled frost made the grass slick beneath Sirius’ boots as he watched the army of Silvalith cross the plain and halt 500 feet from their front line. His teeth chattered, but not from the cold. He had promised to find Remus on the battlefield, but standing in borrowed armor on a weak flank felt like a deaths sentence already. He hoped he would find Remus still breathing. Still whole. Still his.

James, Dorcas, and Marlene returned from a last-minute meeting with a heaviness in their shoulders. “What’s the verdict?” Lily asked. Sirius admired her courage.

“I’ll stay with the archers,” James said. The side of his jaw ticked with annoyance. “I can’t walk well enough to do much else yet.”

“I’m with the riders, and Marlene will be with the generals.” The light tremor in Dorcas’ voice betrayed her outward calm. They all knew the lines would break as soon as Silvalith got their feet under them. “You three will stay with your groups.”

James let out a slow breath. “Sirius, you’re a strong fighter. They want you near the third line.”

“Near the archers?”

“Other side.”

Sirius’ throat constricted and he managed a tight nod. “You three will come with us for negotiations, though,” Marlene said. “We’re the only ones who know what happened in that courtyard and we’ll need all the help we can get.”

None of them made a move to leave, even as unfamiliar voices echoed across the too-small valley. Sirius felt like crying, but no tears burned his eyes. The shivering remained. “Lily,” James said under his breath. She closed her eyes. “Lily, if something happens, I need you to know that I was wrong about being friends and—”

“Oh, f*ck it,” she muttered. The mix of terror and determination on her face was a sharp contrast to her gentle hands as she gripped the front of James’ shirt and dragged him in for a kiss. His knees visibly went weak; Sirius made eye contact with Marlene and saw his own starburst of vindicated glee mirrored back at him.

James gaped as Lily stepped back at last. “What?”

“For good luck,” she said, a little breathless.

“Huh?”

“Worked for him, didn’t it?” Lily jerked her head toward Sirius and swiped a thumb over her lower lip, looking rather flustered. “I’m—I should go. If any of you die out there, I’ll be really, really angry with you.”

“There go my plans,” Sirius joked weakly. She sniffed and punched him on the arm before hurrying off toward the Middle Kingdom squadron with a white-knuckled grip on her axe and her head held high. It felt like a piece of his heart ripped off and went with her.

“She kissed me,” James whispered, still watching her go. “On the mouth.”

“I don’t think she was aiming for a nostril,” Marlene sighed. On the crest of the hill, horns began to blow, and Sirius let his eyes fall shut for a moment. “That’s our cue.”

“If something happens out there, get to each other,” Sirius blurted as they began to disperse. “Just promise me that I won’t find any of you alone.”

Peter bit the inside of his lip and nodded as tears welled up in his clear blue eyes. Dorcas kept her head up and clasped Peter’s shoulder, then Sirius’. “We’re a team,” she said. “Us, and Lily, and Remus, once he gets back. We’re never alone.”

More calls went up among their ranks; the sound of swords being drawn and armor clanking filled the air. James left him with a final side hug as they dispersed without a word. Sirius found the third line and tried not to remember that he was surrounded by strangers, unsure of where his family was and almost certainly going to die. Riddle had sucked Silvalith dry of resources and funneled every coin into the military—it had brought nothing but suffering to his people during seventy years of peace, but the sheer size and power coming at them was chilling.

The cacophony of screeching metal and shouted instructions came to an abrupt halt and a tall, blond man in a black cloak stepped forward. “By order of King Riddle of Silvalith, you are to lay down your weapons and offer official documents of surrender,” he declared. “Or we will attack with the full force of our army.”

Various cries went up among the ranks, but they were quieted in moments by the generals. Take it easy, Sirius reminded himself as his pulse pounded in his ears. There’s no blood yet.

The blond man cleared his throat; Sirius squinted. He looked awfully familiar. “Collected peoples of Tidoras, Marajis, the Eastern Coastal islands, and the Middle Kingdom, we come here today to—”

“What about Frystmark?” a man shouted from the cavalry lines, spurring a wave of angry protests.

“Seeing as they are not here to speak for themselves—”

“You’re just going to leave them alone?” another voice accused.

“They have been taken care of!” the Silval general snapped. Sirius’ world spun on its axis for a moment and he felt a stranger’s elbow bump him back upright when his knees wobbled. No. “Our reinforcements are in the capital as we speak, and—”

“You okay, kid?” a gruff voice asked, almost inaudible through the roaring protests around them.

Sirius opened his mouth, but nothing came out. They would have had no warning. Marlene said she hadn’t heard from Remus in more than a week. Slaughter in the snow, except this time they weren’t nearly as protected. “My—my friend—”

The low, wavering bay of a hunting horn from deep in the woods interrupted him. The field fell silent; goosebumps raced up Sirius' spine as a wolf’s howl answered and blinding panic gave way to relief. There you are. A third call echoed from his right, from the other side of the opposing army. Snapping growls and barks of every pitch seeped through the trees without visible hosts; the Silval soldiers began to shift, and the horses of Marajis nickered and stomped their swift hooves.

Direwolves had never truly frightened Sirius before, but when they slunk out of the forest with their heads low and bloody fangs bared, even he felt a pit of fear weigh heavy in his gut. They came in more colors than he ever imagined—black, tan, woody brown, grey as a thunderous sky. Remus and his parents had sent up the call, and it seemed every direwolf north of the border had answered.

The beasts were far outnumbered by warriors—their armor was scorched and battered, but it was strong, and every face was painted with fury. Lines of charcoal etched stark patterns against their skin. Thick hides adorned their shoulders, and their swords caught the sunlight.

Lyall was bracketed on either side by a wolf as they broke free from the pack and strode to meet the blond general in the middle of the field. The crowd shifted to let the other royals through; Sirius felt a light tug on his elbow. "With me," James murmured out of the corner of his mouth, swallowing hard. Joy sparked alongside his pounding heartbeat as he followed close behind.

It took everything in Sirius' power not to whoop when Remus transformed back into himself with a smudge of blood next to his mouth and burning fire in his eyes. Hope shifted to her human form with grace despite the clear threat dripping off her and the crimson stains on her slender hands; gasps of shock rippled through the crowd behind them. “Starting without us?” she asked, cool and calm and deadly. “I wouldn’t count on reinforcements. Are you the representative for King Riddle?”

The general stared at her, stunned into silence. “I—well, I—”

“It’s not a difficult question, Mr…?”

“Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy,” he said with as much dignity as he could muster. Sirius tried not to roll his eyes—the pompous bastard hadn’t changed a bit since Narcissa’s wedding. “I am King Riddle’s captain-general and wartime representative.”

“Then as the representative, I would assume you know the rules of warfare?” Annette co*cked a sharp eyebrow. “Shall we walk you through those as well?”

Lucius’ face flushed. “That won’t be necessary.”

“A meeting, then.” Lyall’s voice was colder than the winter wind. “To discuss the future of your country.”

Lucius nodded curtly; the ranks of the Middle Kingdom parted to let them through to the strategy tent, murmuring among themselves. A hand slipped into his own for half a second and Sirius felt a quick squeeze before it disappeared once more, leaving the shadow of a smile on Remus’ face when he risked a glance.

If his nose goes any higher in the air, he’s going to break something, Sirius thought as they took their places around the table and Lucius attempted to look important. His pale gaze lingered on Sirius—he held the stare, unblinking, until Lucius looked away.

“That’s an interesting badge,” King Rashid remarked as a squire smoothed the large map spreading between them. “I remember seeing a similar one on the cloaks of the people who kidnapped and imprisoned us. Have we met?”

“I don’t believe so,” Lucius said through a forced smile. “Per the rules of engagement, we are to discuss the terms of your surrender in a civil and respectful manner. We will begin with—”

Fleamont raised his index finger and Lucius fell silent. “I’m afraid you have the wrong impression, Mr. Malfoy. We are here to negotiate the terms of your surrender.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Then beg, Sirius wanted to respond. Queen Louise beat him to the punch. “None of us will be surrendering. Five armies against one is hardly a bargain worth taking on your part, and breaking a seventy-year peace between nations would be a terrible mistake.”

“You have nothing to fight for,” Euphemia continued. “Your king is dead. Your economy is in shambles. Surrender, and we will help restore the glory of your country. Fight, and you will be responsible for the waste of many innocent lives.”

Lucius’ jaw was tight. “You have incorrect information. King Riddle is alive and well.”

“He’s been dead for weeks,” Euphemia corrected.

“Lies.”

“We have seven eyewitnesses here today who can attest to that as the truth.”

Cruelty twisted his thin mouth. “Your only proof is the words of murderers and thieves.”

For a moment, Sirius wondered if Hope was going to shift and tear Lucius’ throat out herself, but Annette drew herself up to her full height and loomed over him before Hope could move more than a step. “How dare you—”

A surprised shout cut her off from outside the tent, followed by the rustle of many voices talking over one another. They all stared at the doorway, stunned and bewildered, before a soft knock rapped against the outer post. “Pardon the interruption, but may I come in?”

The squire hurried to the tent and vanished through the flap for a moment before returning, even more confused than before. “A…man, is here to see you, your highnesses.”

“What kind of man?” Lord Lockhart asked.

“I’m not sure, your lordship.”

“Pardon me, dear boy,” the same wizened voice said before the tent flap raised of its own accord and the squire was unceremoniously shooed aside by a tall man in an even taller hat. Faint blue light radiated off the walls. Dumbledore bowed. “I sincerely apologize for my tardiness. Things have grown complicated over the past few weeks, due to the efforts of your heirs. Now, did I hear that you were looking for proof of Tom Riddle’s death?”

In the corner, Lucius bristled. “That is King Riddle to you, you—”

“Nonsense,” Dumbledore said briskly. “Tom was an old friend of mine, before his heart took a turn for the worse. It was a pity he had to die as he did, but necessary.”

“The king is not dead.”

Dumbledore hummed and drew out a large, cloth-wrapped package—how it fit in such a small bag, Sirius had no idea. He set it carefully on the tabletop and unwrapped it just enough to show the top of a massive, iridescent snake scale, still spattered with shimmering blood. “I believe this will suffice.”

Lucius went pale. "Impossible," he whispered. “Your conjuring cannot fool—”

“It's real.” Sirius held his palms out to show the long scars cutting across in the same curve as the scale's edge. “I got these during the battle in Os Anguis, after Riddle transformed.”

“He used the same type of magic as Frystmark,” Remus added. “Some sort of shapeshifting.”

James rolled his pant leg up to show the circular wound on his thigh, mostly healed but lined with dull green. “The snake’s venom nearly killed me. You’ve seen what it can do, haven’t you?”

It was the same stuff that had lined Bellatrix’s knives, and likely the weapons of many of Lucius’ subordinates. The same stuff that Sirius was willing to bet the king had poisoned people with before. Riddle ruled through fear, and he had no doubt Lucius had been threatened into submission by magic beyond his power.

Lord Lockhart coughed lightly. “The throne of Silvalith is vacant. If you surrender now and take your army away, we have agreed as a council to provide aid to your people until a new ruler is selected. A series of checks and balances will ensure this never happens again, but internal affairs will be left to your own government. From now on, all leaders are required to attend council meetings in person and cannot send representatives unless a dire emergency occurs.”

“We are not seeking war,” Queen Louise said. “We just want peace. Do not make your family suffer your death in vain. Do not become responsible for the pain of a war you will not win. Do not immortalize yourself in failure. Keep your life and your honor, and leave this place.”

Lucius looked around the table once more. Every line of his body was rigid. “We will discuss further details before I sign anything,” he stated, lip curling as he looked to Sirius. “But only the reigning leaders will be present. I will not speak of sensitive matters around naïve children.”

Sirius bit back a few pointed comments about Lucius’ own status and followed James out into the daylight, catching a subtle wink from Dumbledore. "Do you think he'll do it?" Marlene asked as they hiked across the field.

Remus shrugged. "Worst comes to worst, mum goes for the throat."

"Have I mentioned recently that I'm really, really glad you're on our side?" James snorted humorlessly. "Because I am really,really glad you're on our side."

"The face paint is a nice touch," Dorcas added. At Remus' confused look, she gestured to his mouth. "You took a nice souvenir from the reinforcements."

"sh*t," he muttered, swiping his sleeve over his mouth and grimacing at the blood left behind as the rest of them laughed. "Was it at least intimidating?"

"Very," Sirius assured him.

Their easy banter seemed to soothe the shuffling of the warriors around them—Sirius still felt like all his organs had been tied into a neat little ball of anxiety, but he had to keep his faith in their parents' diplomacy skills. None of them became respected leaders by accident, after all, regardless of their fighting experience. And if it came down to combat, he would have his friends by his side. His family.

He still hoped he would never have to lift a sword against another person again.

After two hours, nine people (and one batty old wizard) emerged from the tent with a freshly-signed roll of parchment. A cheer went up from thousands of voices, so loud the ground rumbled and the horses began to whinny. Marlene lifted Dorcas clear off the ground in her excitement with a whoop of joy; James and Lily collided in a kiss that honestly looked like it might hurt a little, though they seemed to be having a fine time.

“Holy sh*t," Peter choked out as Sirius dragged him in for a hard hug. "Holy sh*t, it's over."

The second he let Peter go, warm hands grabbed him by either side of his leather breastplate and he enthusiastically met Remus in the middle for a bruising kiss. "Did you see stars?" Sirius demanded when they finally parted an inch, both panting.

A grin tilted Remus' lips up, and his hold grew tighter. “Just fireworks so far. Might need to try again.”

And who was Sirius to pass up an invitation like that?

Chapter 14: The Parting Glass

Chapter Text

Sirius breathed in the warm summer air, so sweet he could almost taste it. Roses, marigolds, and…honeysuckle. Marlene would kill me if I forgot.

“Ambassador.”

He cracked one eye open and suppressed a smile, setting his drink down to bow deeply. “Your Highness.”

The Silval queen filled her own clear crystal goblet and looked over the crowds with a hum. “A lovely party, don’t you think?”

“Indeed.”

“It’s a shame I haven’t been out to visit. There’s just too much to do.”

“Well, maybe you’d learn how to throw a party if you came out here once in a while.”

The queen’s eyes crinkled with her laughter and she wrapped him in a tight hug. “I see you’re as insolent as ever.”

“Missed you, Andy,” he said into the thick brown coils of her hair. She stepped back after a moment and held him at arm’s length with a quick survey of his face. Her eyes were just as clever as he remembered, but they glittered with amusem*nt rather than her sister’s madness. “How’s the queening business? Ready to run off and marry another peasant?”

“The one I have is more than enough. Want my job for a day?”

“Absolutely not.”

“You’d start a coup just to spite me,” Andromeda teased, leaning back against the edge of the table laden with food. There was enough to feed a small army, but much of it had been picked over—Sirius moved to stand slightly in front of the chocolates Marlene favored, just in case.

“Speak of the devil,” he murmured, taking a sip of wine as the brides whirled past in a tumble of laughter. Their flower crowns cast a trail of petals behind them, and their smiles were even brighter than the shimmering detail of their white and gold gowns. He noted Marlene’s change from delicate slippers to her worn old boots with no small sense of satisfaction, and raised his glass to them when Dorcas waved.

“I think your boy needs a hand,” Andromeda mused. Sirius followed her eye line and saw Remus in his wolf form, laying patiently by one of the drink tables as a much smaller wolf gnawed on one of his ears.

“Are you kidding? He’s having a great time.” As if on cue, Remus nudged the smaller wolf off and put his paw over her pointy nose. “See?”

Andromeda opened her mouth, likely to fire back with one of her classic one-liners that always made her Sirius’ favorite cousin, only to be interrupted by a call of “my lady!” from the Silval delegates. Her lips pressed together in a thin line. “Think I can hide under the table?”

“Make a break for the ocean and don’t look back. I’ll cover for you, but I’ll need a wig and a dress as soon as you can find them.”

“You’re a godsend.” With a final kiss to his cheek and a sigh, she collected herself and wove through the throngs of partygoers. Her sparkling teal dress stood out against the warmer colors of most of the guests, though the brides remained rays of sun.

A familiar tremor in the air caught his periphery and he glanced toward Remus, who was standing in human form as he ushered a young girl toward the dancers. She put all her strength into hauling him after her, giggling and gaptoothed, and he put up a real show of resistance before allowing her to drag him into the whirling crowd. Sirius smiled into the rim of his cup; despite the frostiness of his resting face, Remus was always a sucker for little kids. It was one of the things he loved most about him.

“You don’t look like you’re having fun,” Marlene singsonged as she forcibly took his drink away and spun him in a circle. “It’s rude to not have fun on your best friend’s wedding day.”

“You said you were my best friend?” Sirius scoffed.

“I’m everyone’s best friend. And—” She poked him in the chest midway through a twirl. “—I’m the bride. You have to be nice to me.”

“What if I like the other bride better?”

“That just means you have good taste.”

He shook his head, still grinning. “I’m really happy for you, Maz. This is perfect.”

“It is, isn’t it?” She practically glowed with joy as they took a turn around the floor. Sirius had always hated dance lessons as a child, but he found nothing but happiness doing it with his friends. The song changed to something slower, and Marlene put her forehead on his shoulder with a stifled yawn. “I’m starving.”

“Go get food, then.”

“If I leave, someone else is going to want to dance with me.” Her stomach growled like a rabid bear. “Don’t laugh!”

“Sorry, sorry,” Sirius snickered. “Do you want to switch clothes for a disguise?”

“The knees of your pants would be dragging on the ground.”

“But I would look bloody brilliant in that dress.”

“You do have the calves for it,” she agreed. “Will you walk with me and intercept anyone that tries to speak in my general direction?”

“Anything for the bride.”

They made it through with minimal problems; Lily seemed to pick up on their predicament as they passed, and quickly engaged a nobleman in a riveting conversation about the difference between birch and aspen with a quick wink to Marlene. James, whose eyes had not strayed from the ring on her left hand in a solid twenty minutes, did not seem perturbed in the least by the loss of his partner.

“Aren’t you going to save some for your wife?” Sirius half-laughed as Marlene shoved half a sandwich in her mouth.

“She can fend for herself,” she mumbled. “This is so f*cking good. Mmm. I’m never having a wedding again.”

“You better not.”

She looked to the dance floor and her whole face softened as Dorcas came into view, making a beeline for another table. “If I manage to lose that, just lock me up.”

“Noted.”

She raised her eyebrows at him around the next bite of cheese and bread. “And if you manage to lose him, I’ll dunk you in the ocean by your ankles.”

“Also noted.” A smile twitched at his lips, but he kept it down. He wanted to see how long it would take her to notice the thin strand of leather twined around his finger, or the matching one around Remus’. James, of course, had sniffed it out immediately—Sirius wasn’t entirely sure Peter would figure it out until he showed up at their actual wedding. Remus appeared from the crowd and snuck up behind Dorcas, startling her so hard she snorted lemon water out her nose and socked him in the shoulder.

“You’d better rescue him,” Marlene said. “She’s quite dangerous when someone comes between her and strawberries.”

“It would be a real shame if that face was damaged,” Sirius sighed. Dorcas had resorted to pelting Remus with small strawberry leaves which he batted away, still laughing. It had been too long since they were all together, in Sirius’ opinion.

“—wedding, you asshole!” Dorcas was saying as he approached, finally halting her attack with a half-smile.

“Alright, I’m sorry!”

“Excuse me,” Sirius said with a gentle tap to his shoulder. “Could I steal you for a dance?”

Remus’ smile when he turned was the best thing Sirius had seen all day; his hand was cool despite the day’s heat when it slipped into Sirius’ and a kiss from soft lips pressed against his cheekbone. “Absolutely, ambassador.”

“You have a leaf in your hair,” Sirius informed him as they began a slow waltz. He pulled it free and gave the tawny curl a playful tug.

“A rare sight for me, truly.”

“I love you.”

Remus turned pink from ears to neck. “I love you, too. What was that for?”

He shrugged. “Just because. How long are you staying?”

“Five days. How about you?”

“The coastal officials leave Wednesday, but I might be able to convince them to let me stay a bit longer.”

“The north is in dire need of some help from the ambassador, actually,” Remus said gravely.

“Dire need? Sounds serious.”

“Mhmm.” The corner of his lips curled into a grin. “Know where I might find him?”

“No, but I’ll take a look around. I hear he’s devastatingly handsome.”

“Is that so?”

“Oh, yeah. All the Frystmarkans like him better than that stuffy old prince—” He cut off with a snort as Remus stepped on his foot. “Careful, there, didn’t you have dance lessons as a child?”

“You are a menace to society.”

Sirius kissed his nose and held him closer until their chests were flush. “But I’m your menace to society.”

“Always.” Remus squeezed his left hand gently and kissed him full on the mouth. Sirius felt his knees go a little weak, but that wasn’t a concern—after everything they had been through together (and after being away from him for almost a month), he deserved some spine-melting kisses. “Will you be able to come back with us? I missed you.”

“I’m sure I can talk some sense into the officials,” he said against Remus’ lips. “Or sneak out.”

“Always a solid backup plan with you, isn’t there?”

“Well, if I tell them a feral dog is running loose around Varghal, that might change their minds.”

“A direwolf,” Remus huffed, pulling back.

“A feral puppy?”

“Wolf. Think big and scary.”

“Little tiny puppy dog.”

“I hate you.”

Sirius grinned. “Nah. We’re at a wedding, remember? That’s no place to hate your fiancé.”

Remus’ breath hitched under Sirius’ palm and he rested their foreheads together. “So you’ll come back with us?”

“You can count on it.”

Sirius’ pulse quickened as he crept along the outer edge of the party, silently cursing his choice of outfit. Not many people were wearing anything resembling black, but sue him, he looked better in darker colors. Even Remus had spiced things up a bit with blue and tan instead of his usual neutral tones, and naturally James needed to wear at least four different shades of orange and red at the same time.

“Sirius!” sh*t. He pasted on his best attempt at an innocent smile as Euphemia materialized from the crowd. “Have you seen James?”

“No, sorry.”

“Do you know where he might be?”

“No,” he lied, offering a sympathetic smile as her brows creased. “He mentioned going to the bathroom a while ago?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. sh*t. “He snuck off with Lily, didn’t he?”

Sirius tried not to let his relief show. Look as guilty as you actually are. “Who? I mean, what?”

“You’ve never been able to lie to me,” she laughed, tapping his nose. “And you never will be. Enjoy yourself, love. I’ll go drag my spare boy and future daughter-in-law back to the party where they belong.”

“Enjoy the sunset!” Sirius called after her, sparing only a second to keep his smile up before blowing out a harsh breath and hurrying behind the nearest building. The stables weren’t far from the fairground where the wedding was held, but there was plenty of open space for their plan to be spoiled by carelessness. There was no time to signal Remus; he hoped Marlene would get a chance on her way over.

Grass rustled beneath him as he made a break for the stables, loud as thunder to his own ears. Everyone appeared to still be focused on the party, though a few seemed confused about the absence of the brides. It’s only been a few minutes, he told himself. They can’t be too suspicious.

The back door to the stable opened with a creak. Something inside shuffled. “Hello?” he whispered, creeping over the threshold and closing the door.

“Move,” a voice gritted out. “Your horse is trying to eat my hair.”

“Sorry!” Peter hissed back. Another shadow shifted and Sirius relaxed. “Hi, Sirius!”

“Jamie, mum’s looking for you.” One, two, three, four. He counted the ridges of the stalls in the darkness before he felt warm breath fanning over his hand and reached up to stroke Smokey’s nose. The horse’s name had become a bit of a joke among the others, a way to tease Sirius for his dull wardrobe and resting brooding face, but he was rather fond of it. Smokey was a beautiful steed and had taken him safely to Varghal on many occasions, cementing his place as Sirius’ favorite non-human companion.

“Did you signal Remus?”

He frowned. “Marlene said she would.”

“I did not!”

“Well, I’m not going out there again with my mum on the prowl for us!” Swinging into Smokey’s saddle was muscle memory; at least he could feel all his fingers and toes in the summer weather.

“What did you tell her?” Lily asked, hardly above a whisper.

“That you were making out in a bush somewhere.”

Two groans and a smattering of laughter filled the stables. “I hate you,” James said miserably.

“Oddly enough, you’re not the first person to—”

A furious whinny split the air, followed by a tumble of movement, a BANG, and blinding light. “Holy sh*t!” Marlene yelped as her horse’s hooves broke through the front door and thundered across the grass with the rest of them hot on her tail.

“Sorry!” Peter called.

Sirius’ eyes burned in the wind as his vision returned, still speckled with sunspots at the edges. They careened past the courtyard in a loose pack—James’ face was buried between Lily’s shoulder blades as she clutched the reins and nearly came off the saddle with each bump. Dorcas, who sat just in front of Marlene, was laughing freely.

“Hey!” a frustrated voice shouted. Sirius chanced a look over his shoulder and saw Remus sprinting around the tables with a murderous look in his eye. “That’s not the bloody signal!”

The direwolf had a much easier time maneuvering through people, mostly due to the fact that nobody in their right mind wanted to get in the way of its teeth, claws, or general air of crankiness as it barked at the horses galloping past.

Sirius turned back around and bent low over Smokey’s neck as they raced through the flower arch at the entrance to the fairgrounds, making a beeline for the woods. Green swallowed them up without warning; at the head of the pack, Marlene whooped and urged their horse faster with her arms kept tight around her wife’s waist. The forest path was hardly wide enough for a carriage, let alone four horses running full speed, and Sirius soon found himself riding just behind the newlyweds while laughter bubbled out of his lungs.

A shadow passed overhead—he looked up and saw Remus’ wolf running flat-out along the ridge, ears pricked and panting. He shot out of the mouth of a small natural ramp to the path, keeping easy pace with the horses around a blind corner before dropping back beside Sirius.

“Jump!” Dorcas called, throwing her arms out wide as her horse leapt over a fallen tree. Sirius kept himself low, and then he was flying.

Smokey’s muscles bunched beneath him as he cleared the tree trunk, leaving them suspended for a heartbeat before his swift hooves hit the earth and sent them streaking off again. The wolf’s pace did not falter as every leg extended to make the leap and his massive paws found footing on soft moss. James and Lily’s shouts of terror harmonized; Peter had not stopped laughing since they left the stables.

“This feels like magic!” Sirius yelled over the wind rushing in his ears. The towering oaks and pines around them disappeared in a blur as they broke through the tree line and onto a new path. The entire ocean laid at the base of the hill, stretching on forever.

“I can’t wait to get off this thing!” James answered, though his words were mostly snatched by the breeze.

Sirius heard hoofbeats behind them and craned his neck over his shoulder—in the distance, several horses were entering the woods. “They’re following us!”

“It’s not my fault!” Marlene protested as she brought them to a halt. “Pete’s horse is the one that bit mine in the first place.”

Peter heaved a sigh as he dismounted. “It was an accident.”

“Whatever it was, it took you long enough.” Sirius’ face split into a beaming smile as Regulus leaned on the wall of the boathouse with an unimpressed look in their direction. Then again, it looked awfully similar to his neutral expression. “I was starting to get bored. Congratulations, by the way.”

“You as well,” Dorcas said, drawing him in for a quick hug. The shiny new boatman’s pin on his doublet caught the sunlight and Sirius flicked it as he passed, headed straight for the pier. Even if he decided to move to Varghal permanently someday, there would always be a Black looking out for Euphemia and Fleamont on the coast. Regulus was even more reluctant about their adoptive ways than Sirius had been, but there was no stopping the slow slide into acceptance. Family was funny that way. So was love.

Salty air buffeted Sirius’ face as he stood at the rail of the small sailboat’s bow and he closed his eyes, letting it fill him up. It wasn’t nearly as warm as the coastal breeze he loved so dearly, but it calmed him all the same. Soft, deliberate footsteps padded up behind him; he smiled to himself.

“It’s beautiful,” Remus said quietly. Sirius hummed his agreement. “We could just stay here.”

“Forever?”

“Mhmm.”

Blue shimmered in the setting sun and cast everyone’s faces in burnished gold. James and Regulus were calling instructions to each other as they cast off—Lily hauled the jib up and Sirius felt the exact moment it caught the wind. “I’d like that,” he said at last, leaning his head on Remus’ shoulder. “Though I’d miss the snow with you. And home.”

“Me, too.” A beat of comfortable silence passed between them before Remus’ temple rested against his own. “It’s a nice thought, though. All of us in one place.”

Our pack. The thought had crossed Sirius’ mind many times since their journey began, and even after it had ended. It was hard being away from them so often, even if they no longer had to go all the way around the Wildland now that nature and magic had reclaimed the wasteland; it even recognized their presence, and made paths for them through jewel-toned vines. He often wondered if the knife that killed Riddle would remain in the pit of obsidian where they had left it, or whether some unlucky soul would pick it up. Today was not one of those days.

However much the distance between the pack ached, they made it work. Sirius wrote letters every week, sometimes with interesting news, and sometimes just to say ‘hello’—at every council, they would cram into a single lodge and spend an entire night together. He didn’t know how long it would last, but he found that he didn’t care. For now, it worked. They had peace. Sirius was content to live in the moment as long as he could have his family.

The boat rocked beneath them as James appeared on his other side with Lily at his shoulder. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

Sirius raised a brow. “I hope granddad actually taught you to sail after all these months. It would be a damn shame if the head of a boat company got us stranded on some island.”

“Future head,” James corrected, punching him in the arm. “And I’m pretty sure he likes Regulus more, anyway.”

“Who doesn’t?” Marlene snorted, wrapping her arm around Dorcas’ waist and cuddling into her side. Peter seemed on the verge of sleep as he propped his chin on the smooth railing and closed his eyes. “Aw, Pete, did we wear you out?”

“Please don’t ask me to dance again. My feet can’t take much more.”

Dorcas co*cked her head to the side. “What’s that I’m hearing? Is it—could it be music? Music, for a dance with my wife’s very best friend in the whole wide world?”

“No,” Peter groaned as she grabbed his hands, but it was too late; James was already pulling Lily after them and Remus had a gleam of mischief in his eye. Time for a dance, Sirius thought as he linked their elbows and whirled in a tight circle over the creaking boards, nearly tipping them over the edge. Remus laughed and took his other hand, running a thumb over the leather band in the way that never failed to make Sirius’ heart skip a beat. The first of many.

And it was.

Chapter 15: Art--Dorlene's Wedding

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Chapter 16: Art--Epilogue

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Chapter 17: Art—Winter in Varghal

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